Weasley Rule Number 1
by 93 Diagon Alley
Summary: What if George and Hermione became friends from the get-go? Follow along as their friendship unfolds throughout their Hogwarts career. Rating increased to M.
1. Chapter 1

_Chapter 1 is dedicated to **Wizards-Pupil** for three reasons: 1. It's her birthday, woo! 2. Her love of all things Fred and George, and 3. She's one of my favorite fanfiction writers. If you've never read her work, go check it out! :)_

_And so starts our journey._

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><p><strong>Weasley Rule #1<br>**by: 93 Diagon Alley

"Has anyone seen a toad? Neville's lost one." As she spoke, a small girl – _must be a first year_ – with big front teeth and even bigger poufy hair stepped into our compartment aboard the Hogwarts Express. My friend Lee laughed a bit at her appearance, causing me to frown before responding.

"No, we haven't, but my brother Fred and I would be happy to help you look; right, Fred?" He glanced at me with a look of surprise before turning towards the girl and nodding. "My name's George, by the way. George Weasley."

She stuck her hand out, and I shook it as she spoke. "Hermione Granger, pleased to meet you. Am I correct in guessing that Ron is your brother?"

I chuckled. "Unfortunately. Seems you've met him already, then; sorry to hear that. Anyway, let's go find that toad."

"Alright. His name is Trevor, though I don't think he'll respond to it..."

We set off down the corridor, looking everywhere we could. 30 minutes later, we were about to give him up for lost when the food trolley came through into our car. We heard a quiet 'croooooak,' causing the trolley witch to jump a few feet, and then we spotted him. "Of course!" I laughed, "he WOULD hide out in the barrel of chocolate frogs!" Hermione let out a small giggle and sent a delightful smile my way. I couldn't help but smile back at her, and Fred gave me a funny look.

"George, I think our Good Deeds Quota is filled for the day...let's go see Lee's tarantula again. Nice to meet you, Granger." He started off down the corridor, so I figured I should follow him.

"It was nice to meet you, Hermione, I'm glad we could help you find that toad. Good luck with the sorting later!" I grinned at her and turned to follow my twin.

"Wait, George!" Hermione called, "What house are you in?"

"Gryffindor!" I shouted back, with a quick turn and a wave.

"Cool, thanks again!" I heard her call as I opened the door to our compartment.

"Where've you been, George?" Lee asked as soon as I closed the compartment door.

"Helping her find that toad! You could've helped too, ya know," I responded.

"Eh, we're not prefects; I've got better things to do than mind the ickle firsties," Lee shot back, obviously torn between feeling surprised and annoyed.

I stood up and puffed out my chest. "Weasley Rule #1 – Always save the damsel in distress!" Fred chuckled at that, and dealt me into their game of exploding snap.

-oOo-

Lee and Fred are itching to start the feast; it's starting to get on my nerves. Yeah, sure, I'm hungry too, but at least let the firsties get sorted! You gotta be fair – we were in their shoes once, too. Wait a second. I'm George Weasley – one half of the most fearsome tricksters Hogwarts has seen since the Marauders! What should I care about ickle firsties?

"Granger, Hermione."

...Oh, right. My new friend from the train.

"Gryffindor!"

And she's in my house! I shoved Fred over a bit and made some room next to me before waving her over. "Hermione!" She turned her head and smiled when she saw me, then started making her way over. "Looks like we're housemates, yeah?"

She grinned and nodded. "I'm just grateful to know someone in my house. You're the only friend I've made so far; that is, if you want to be my friend." A bashful look appeared on her face and she ducked her head.

"I'd love to be your friend," I said with a smile.

-oOo-

We sat through the rest of the sorting and commented on each of the first years as they went.

"Longbottom, Neville"

"Hey, he's the one whose toad we found!" Hermione exclaimed, clapping extra loud when he got sorted into Gryffindor as well.

"Parkinson, Pansy"

"There must be something smelly on her upper lip," I started, "because that face cannot be natural."

Hermione stifled a giggle behind her hand at my comment. "Couldn't have said it better myself!"

"Potter, Harry"

The Great Hall broke out in a buzz of hushed conversation. "He was in the compartment with your brother!" Hermione whispered to me.

"Yeah, Fred and I showed him how to get through the barrier at King's Cross," I responded, "I can't believe ickle Ronniekins is friends with the great Harry Potter!"

Our table cheered extra loud when Harry was sorted into our house. Eventually, we neared the end of the sorting. When "Weasley, Ronald" was called, Fred turned to me and said, "two sickles he's in Hufflepuff."

"You're on," I quickly responded, "two sickles for Gryffindor." When he was sorted into our house, Fred groaned and reluctantly handed me the money.

I could hear Percy shouting, "that's my brother, you know! That makes everyone in the family so far!"

Hermione turned to me in surprise. "HE'S your brother, too? Just how many of you ARE there?"

"Seven. Six boys and one girl. She's the youngest; she'll start at Hogwarts next year. How about you?"

"Wow!" Hermione exclaimed, "Six siblings! I can't even imagine. I'm an only child. Your house must be like a zoo at Christmas!"

I rolled my eyes and gave her a lopsided grin. "You have no idea."

* * *

><p>Posted: 17 June 2011<br>Word Count: 935


	2. Chapter 2

_I know my chapters aren't really as long as most people would like, but I'm doing my best. I'm really working on becoming better at expanding my writing and including more details, so at least I'm trying!_

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><p>School passed by rather quickly for me, in a blur of experiments, explosions, detentions, and Hogsmeade weekends. Next thing I knew, it was the Halloween feast, and I couldn't find Hermione. I hadn't gotten to really hang out with her much since her birthday (which was practically forever ago!), and I barely even caught a glimpse of her all week. Needless to say, I was a bit worried.<p>

"Hey Ron, have you seen Hermione? I haven't seen her in ages."

Ron grunted and put down his fork, his ears turning red.

"Last I heard, she'd spent all day crying in the girls' bathroom," Harry replied.

I sighed; this can't be good. I turned to Fred to tell him I was going to go check on Hermione, but before I could even get the words out, Professor Quirrell came running in, frantic. "Troll! Troll in the dungeons! Thought you should know." And fainted.

Some Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher _he_ is. The Great Hall went up in a panic, and Dumbledore started shouting. Once he gave us our instructions, I turned back to Harry and Ron. "Which bathroom is she in? We have to get her back to the tower. Weasley Rule #1, brother." They motioned for me to follow, and we headed towards the loo. We spotted the troll...and he was making his way into Hermione's bathroom! "You guys make sure she's okay, I'll find a professor." I hurried off to find someone – _anyone –_to help, hoping our D.I.D. (that's Damsel in Distress, for those of you not in the know) wasn't actually under attack by a mountain troll...

When I finally found Professor McGonagall, I wasted no time in dragging her to the girls' bathroom. When we got there, the loo was in shambles, the troll was down for the count, and none of the three seemed any worse for the wear. I ran in to hug Hermione while she and the boys explained what happened.

Wait.

She just lied!

She lied to the professors about why she was in there! I guess she just didn't want them to know she'd been crying...I'd have to ask her about that later. I helped her get up, attempting to dust her off in the process. As we made our way back to the tower, she thanked us all again for saving her skin. Guess she's friends with Ron and Harry, now.

-oOo-

Later that night, I turned to Fred and grabbed his shoulder. "Fred. We're going to the kitchens. Come on." He mumbled a bit in protest as I dragged him out of the common room, but I knew he'd never turn down some extra food from the house elves. He _does_ have a Weasley appetite, after all.

We put together a good variety of food, bundled it up, and headed back to the common room. As we stepped through the portrait hole, I spotted Hermione making her way up the girls' stairs.  
>"Hermione! Come back down here a sec."<p>

She came back down, put her hands on her hips, and asked me what I needed. She was clearly grumpy and ready for bed. "I know you didn't get to eat dinner tonight what with all the mayhem. So me and Fred brought you some food from the kitchens."

"THAT'S why we went to the kitchens?" Fred exclaimed. I just laughed at him.

"It's 'Fred and I,' and thank you. That was very sweet of you guys." She gave us a warm smile. "I suppose it won't hurt to stay up a _little_ later..."

-oOo-

One more class and school's out for Christmas! Finally!

I passed Hermione in the halls on my way to Charms, and didn't like the look on her face – she wasn't nearly happy enough to meet my standards. I asked her what was wrong, and she told me that she didn't want to leave the magical world just yet, even if it was only for a few weeks. I suggested she just stay at Hogwarts and celebrate with us; all her friends were staying anyway. Maybe tell her parents that she just needs to get some extra studying in. Unfortunately, she couldn't...I was surprised to find myself more disappointed than I expected. Huh.

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><p>Posted: 18 June 2011<br>Word Count: 721


	3. Chapter 3

__The idea of Fred and George swapping their Weasley sweaters wasn't mine. Credit goes to **Wizards-Pupil**. Thank you!__

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><p>So the Christmas hols passed without too much excitement. Being stuck at Hogwarts isn't my favorite choice...honestly, I miss Christmas at the Burrow. Swapping sweaters with Fred isn't even nearly as fun this year, because we don't have Mum around to confuse. Not to say I'm ungrateful; I <em>did<em> still get to spend Christmas with 3 of my brothers. And I even pulled in a pretty good haul – some fudge from mum and dad, assorted candy from all my siblings, and best of all – a bag full of muggle pranks from Hermione! Fred and I are going to have a field day with those...but anyway.

Somehow, it's already February, and as my luck would have it, I have a not-so-secret admirer this Valentine's Day – Millicent Bulstrode. I know, I know, **believe me**, _I know_. Of all the girls I could attract in all of Hogwarts, it had to be good ol' Millie that would publicly own up to it. Oh well, at least it's not Moaning Myrtle...I can at least hide from Millicent in the bathrooms. Not that I'd resort to hiding out in the loo...I'm a Weasley Twin, for Merlin's sake! I've got to man up about this!

"...George?"

"Hermione?"

"You _do_ know you're talking to yourself, right?"

Bollocks.

-oOo-

It's dinner time. I've successfully avoided Millicent all day, go me! Now if I can just make it through one last meal, I can escape to the safety of the Gryffindor common room for the rest of the night...fingers crossed!...

No. Oh no. _Please_ no! She's walking over here, clutching some sort of paper. Merlin, when did first years start growing a pair and approaching boys like this? She's_eleven!_ The Great Hall just went silent...here it comes...

"Hello, George."

How is it that she can tell us apart?

"You're probably wondering why I'm over here. Well, I wrote you a poem for Valentine's Day, and I would have just owled it to you, but the girls dared me to recite it for you, so...here goes:"

By now, my beet-red face is in my hands, I'm DYING.

"_Weasley, oh Weasley, you beautiful boy  
><em>_You're a trickster by trade and behind every ploy  
><em>_You charm the pants off of all that you meet  
><em>_And have flaming red hair that I think is so neat  
><em>_Oh Weasley, George Weasley, you'd be such a fool  
><em>_To choose anyone but me out of all of the school  
><em>_So tell me right now, while your attention is mine  
><em>_Will you please, oh **please** be my Valentine?"_

To say that we were all shocked would be an understatement. Mouths were hanging open all along the Gryffindor table...and Hufflepuff...and Ravenclaw...and_especially_ Slytherin. Did somebody slip her a love potion? This is **totally** out of character.

Meanwhile, batty ol' Dumbledore is giving her a standing ovation with a stupid grin on his face. Uggghhhh.

Suddenly, Hermione nudged my knee with hers under the table. "Oh Millicent, I'm so sorry. George already has a Valentine!" Millicent looked put out; I just looked at Hermione with wild eyes. What was she talking about? I don't have a Valentine; heck, I'm not even really all that interested in dating yet! "Yeah, I was just feeling so down, missing home, that he decided to cheer me up by asking me to be his Valentine. He even gave me a daisy earlier. Oh, I'm so sorry. Maybe next year, yeah?"

Oh Hermione. I think I love you.

...No, not literally. I'm just So. Bloody. RELIEVED! Seems my favorite girl (well, besides Ginny of course!) is quite the quick thinker, and I couldn't be more grateful for it. "Yeah, I'm sorry, Millie. I hear Fred doesn't have a Valentine, though, and he's almost as handsome as me! Maybe you could ask him."

She gave me a wistful smile, and walked back to the Slytherin table with a quietly muttered, "Oh well, thanks anyway..."

Yep, that's me. George Weasley: already a heart breaker at 13. Some things you just can't help.

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><p>Posted: 20 June 2011<br>Word Count: 680


	4. Chapter 4

Well, it's officially my favorite day of the year – April Fool's Day. Or better known as Fred's and my birthday. What better opportunity for mischief and mayhem than today? We have all sorts of ideas lined up...but don't let me ruin the surprise for you!

I started my morning off by jumping on Fred's bed, prepared to start bouncing around and yelling at him to wake up. He was apparently one step ahead of me, though, because as soon as I landed on his bed, I was rocketed off onto the floor with a yell of, "Happy birthday, Georgie!" in my ear. I grinned, and joined Fred in waking Lee the same way I had intended to wake my twin.

With a grumpy groan of "Geroff, Gred! Geroff, Forge!," Lee burrowed himself deeper under his covers, trying to escape us. A mere Lee Jordan is no match for the Weasley Twins, however; we soon had him out of bed and dressed in no time at all.

We made our way down to breakfast, where I spotted Harry, Ron, and Hermione. There was an open seat next to my favorite female firstie, so I slid onto the bench beside her. Just as I sat, though, a really loud fart sound came from the general area of my bum...I leaped off the bench amidst the surrounding laughter, and found the source – a pale, pink circle on the seat beneath me. It's apparently called a 'Whoopee Cushion'...huh. 'Whoopee' indeed. -_grumble-_ Hermione was still attempting to stifle her laughter behind her hand long after everyone else had stopped laughing, so I knew I had found the culprit.

"Granger! Pranked, on my own birthday? By an ickle firstie bookworm, no less? Godric, you've got guts! Well done, Hermione, well done. I've never been pranked on my birthday before, you know. We'll just have to work on your poker face for future endeavors."

"Seriously? I'm the first to ever get you on your birthday? It's truly an honor. But surely, Fred had to have gotten you at some point..." She smiled bashfully, giving a pointed look across the table from us at my twin.

"Nah, me and Fred don't often prank each other; especially not on April 1st. Today is reserved for extreme tag-team pranking only. It's alright to be proud of yourself." I patted her on the back as I finished speaking, and then tucked into my breakfast. "Oh, and I'd avoid the oatmeal."

Ron's hand froze mid-bite, dropping his spoon with a clatter onto his plate and dribbling oatmeal down his front. "Huh?" Not a second later, his face started turning a bright magenta, his hair disappeared, and his ears became pointy like a goblin's.

"What did you do?" he squeaked; at least, I think that's what he tried to say. It sounded more like, "Wudd'oo do?" I just laughed and cuffed him on the shoulder.

"Happy April Fool's, little brother."

-oOo-

The best part of the day was our grand finale. Normally, we reserve our last prank of the day for Snape. This year, however, we've decided to let the entire staff table in on the fun at dinner. See, Fred and I have been working on creating and inventing new and exciting things for the world of pranks, so we can one day open our own store. Our latest invention is called the Self-Propelling Custard Pie – sounds simple enough, right? It flies at the face of the intended target. Well, we hadn't gotten to try it out on the unsuspecting public yet, so we were itching to use it. We tweaked it a bit so it'd stay on its victim's face for 2 hours, put timed disillusionment charms on them, and set them up in the Great Hall in line with the staff table. Right when the dinner foods disappeared and the desserts took their place, it happened. Every single professor, pied in the face. It was an absolutely glorious sight to behold. The best part? Watching them trying to wipe off the custard. It's charmed to stay on for two hours, remember? _-devious grin-_ A birthday well-spent, I'd say. Great success.

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><p>Posted: 20 June 2011<br>Word Count: 701


	5. Chapter 5

So I'm hanging with Fred and Lee in the common room, playing gobstones, when Ron and Hermione climb through the portrait hole. Ron looks like he's been in a fight...

"Oi, Ronniekins! Who beat you up?" Fred yelled.

They came over to us, and proceeded to tell us about the last few hours below the school...

"Blimey," Lee breathed out heavily, "you guys did all that? Gobstones suddenly seems boring, eh lads? Lads?"

But Fred and I were a little too busy to answer – we were in the middle of inspecting Ron and Hermione to make sure there wasn't any lasting damage.

"Wait!" Hermione declared, "we need to see if Harry made it out okay!" So the five of us headed towards the hospital wing. When we arrived, we discovered that Harry was safe, but unconscious, so we decided to come back later on. We headed down to dinner, and then back to the dorm to get some stuff for him. Ron, Hermione and Lee grabbed some candy, and we started making our way back to the hospital wing, but as we passed one of the bathrooms, inspiration struck.

"Hold up, guys. Are you thinking what I'm thinking, George?"

"I believe I might be, Fred."

"Let's get it!" We chimed together, and walked into the bathroom. A few minutes later, we walked back out, a toilet seat clutched in Fred's hands.

"Okay, carry on now, troops," Lee announced, clearly amused with our latest acquisition. Unfortunately, Madame Pomfrey didn't seem to be quite as impressed with our gift, because she didn't allow us to bring it in. Oh well, it's the thought that counts, right?

-oOo-

So now exams are over, and it's time to leave for the summer. I spent the train ride in a compartment with Fred and Lee, brainstorming ideas for new pranks. Before we knew it, we were pulling into King's Cross Station. Me and Fred climbed off the train after saying goodbye to Lee and headed towards the ginger mob we call our family. We each gave Harry a quick handshake before he was whisked away by his aunt and uncle.

"George?"

I turned around to find Hermione with a shy, unsure smile on her face.

"Hermione! Are you headed home already? Did you get to meet the rest of my family yet?"

"Slow down, George. I met them all, they seem very nice. My parents are ready to leave, I was just waiting until I could find you to say goodbye. Didn't want you to forget me over the summer!"

"Of course not, Hermione. How could _anyone_ forget you? I'll miss you!"

I hugged her, and she lingered a little longer than I expected. Guess she's going to miss me too...

"Alright, well, have a good summer, Mione!"

"You too, George." She had started walking away, when I shouted to her.

"Mione! Will you write me over the hols?"

A dazzling smile lit up her face. "Everyday, if you'd like!"

I waved and gave her my biggest grin. "Brilliant."

* * *

><p>Posted: 21 June 2011<br>Word Count: 523


	6. Chapter 6

My summer passed by without much excitement at all.

Ron just came into me and Fred's room, though, to tell us that he's worried about Harry. He apparently hasn't been responding to any of his or Hermione's letters...so we decided we were gonna take dad's car, fly it to Surrey, and break him out of his prison. For now, we just have to wait until it's late enough that Mum won't hear us leave...

...and we're back! That was one bloody good adventure, I'd say. We flew a flying car across England, broke bars off of a window, picked a lock with a muggle hair pin, and rescued Harry from what seemed to be the most miserable existence ever. I have _got_ to write Hermione about this. In the meantime, however, I have to degnome the garden and do a slew of other chores; Mum caught us sneaking back in. It was all worth it, however, when Ginny came downstairs to discover THE Harry Potter sitting at our kitchen table. The loud, confident Gin that we know and love was reduced to merely a squeaking mess when she spotted him; it was quite amusing. This should be an interesting few weeks.

-oOo-

It's almost time to go back to Hogwarts! I'm especially excited because Ginny gets to come with us this year. Out of all our siblings, she's the most like me and Fred, so we have quite a bit of fun together. I'm hoping she and Hermione get along, too, because I know they both could use some female friends. Yeah, I'm a big softy, I know. I'm over it.

But speaking of Hermione, I get to see her today! We're going to Diagon Alley to get our school stuff, and she's convinced her parents to meet us there. I'm excited. Sure, we've been owling back and forth all summer, but that's no the same as actually _seeing _someone.

"Fred! George!"

That'll be Mum. Looks like we're heading out now. I can't wait to check out the new brooms at Quality Quidditch Supplies...if Mum even lets us go there. A boy can hope...

I got up from my chair and grabbed Fred's shoulder. "C'mon, Freddy, we've gotta go! Grab your wand and hurry up."

"Hold your hippogriffs, George! I was about to get up. Someone's a little too excited to see our resident bookworm, I see."

"Sure, I'm looking forward to seeing Hermione, but right now I'm just more concerned with not incurring Mum's wrath. Let's go."

We traipsed down the stairs and made our way over to the fireplace. "On through the floo, boys, we were waiting on you. And go _directly_ to Diagon Alley! If you so much as _think_ about stepping foot in Knockturn Alley, you'll be degnoming the garden every day until you're 40."

"Yes, Mum," we all chorused. Grabbing some floo powder, we made our way one by one through the fireplace. When we had all gotten there, we were promptly herded to Flourish & Blott's to get our textbooks. Did I mention that our new DADA teacher is requiring everyone to get a whole set of books by some bloke called Gilderoy Lockhart? It's crazy. We can't possibly need that many books for one class (we're not all Hermione, you know!)

Upon stepping foot inside the bookshop, we discovered a ridiculous line of some sort...oh. Apparently, this Lockhart fellow is signing one of his books. Mum looks a little too excited about this...

Just as we were starting to make our way over to the shelves to start getting our books, Lockhart spotted Harry, and dragged him over for some photos. Great. Just what he needs, more attention.

Fred and I managed to somehow sneak away to do a little exploring. When we got back over to the family, though, we discovered Dad getting into a bit of a fight with Lucius Malfoy. Perfect. Good thing we already paid for our books, because we just got kicked out of the shop. On the flip side, I think I just spotted Hermione!

Yep, that's her. Brilliant! She guided her confused-looking parents over to our horde, and proceeded to introduce them to Mum and Dad; the latter of which looked _far_ too thrilled to be meeting muggles. Sometimes, I worry about my dear old dad's sanity.

"George! Were you not planning on saying hello to Granger here?" Fred asked, "after how excited you were earlier, I'm rather surprised."

...Dammit, Fred. I can feel my ears turning what I expect to be a startling shade of red. I turned around to look at Hermione, only to see a brilliant smile on her face. "George!" She exclaimed, rushing over to hug me. Yaaay, I enjoy hugs from Hermione! For some reason, they're so much warmer and more comfortable than other people's hugs. Not quite sure why, but heck, I'm not complaining.

"Hermione! I'm so glad you made it. You missed all the fun earlier; Dad got us kicked out of Flourish & Blott's!"

She gasped. "No, he didn't! Whatever did he do?"

"The chap got into a brawl with old man Malfoy, that's what. Knocked over a few bookcases in the process, too."

Her jaw dropped, and I could have sworn I saw a swell of pride flit across her face for a second. She shook her head, and a smile lit up her face. "I totally forgot to tell you – your mum invited me to stay with you guys tonight and tomorrow night so I can go to King's Cross with your family. My mum and dad said I could go, so your dad's coming to my house later tonight to apparate me over!"

"That's great, Mione! I can't wait." A brilliant smile graced my features. "Oh! Looks like we're moving on, let's follow."

-oOo-

We spent the next three hours exploring Diagon Alley with our two families, getting the rest of our school supplies. When the Weasley brood was done, we each took our turn saying goodbye to Hermione for the afternoon. I was the last one, and as soon as she said, "Goodbye, George," her parents looked over and smiled.

"Oh, so _you're_ George?" her mum asked, "we've heard a lot about you! We'd love to get to know you; why don't you stick around and join us for the rest of our shopping? Is that alright, Molly?"

"I suppose it's fine, as long as you don't mind walking him back to the Leaky Cauldron after for him to floo home. Are you going to stay, George?"

"Sure, that sounds like it'd be fun. Thanks, Mum."

"No problem, Georgie boy. You just behave yourself and mind your manners. Will Fred be joining you, too?"

"Nah, I'm just gonna go back home and tinker with a project we've been working on. Can't let the Burrow go too many hours without mischief, right?" Fred winked at me, and then smiled at Hermione. "You just keep an eye on my twin, eh Granger? Merlin knows what trouble he'll get into without his better half." Hermione just laughed at that as I mock-frowned at Fred.

"Okay, Weasleys, let's go. See you at home, George, be good!" Mum smiled at me and the Grangers before heading back to the Leaky with the rest of my family and Harry.

-oOo-

The next two hours with the Grangers were a lot more fun than I expected. Hermione's parents had heard that I was her first friend at Hogwarts, and thanked me for it. Apparently, she had been worried about fitting in before starting school last year.

We spent our time together getting the rest of Hermione's school supplies and food for Crookshanks. As we walked, I struck up a conversation with Mr. Granger that resulted in me telling him all about my antics with Fred – pranks we'd played, things we'd invented, and our dreams of a shop. I can't count the number of times I'd made him laugh, which filled me with pride. And he seemed really interested in our shop plans! I think that was the first time an adult seemed to support me and Fred's goals. Wicked.

Once we finished up the shopping, Hermione's mum insisted they take me for some ice cream at Fortescue's – sugar free, of course. We found a nice little table off in a corner, and settled into the booth together. Mrs. Granger asked me all about myself, and I was pretty open and honest with her – she seemed to be impressed with me. Called me a "respectful, well-mannered young man." (But please, _please_ don't ever let my family know that. Fred will NEVER let me live that down!) Hermione gave me a huge grin at this, and I couldn't help but smile back.

Once we finished our ice cream, the Grangers walked me back to the Leaky Cauldron, with parting words that included hopes of seeing me again in the future, and thanks for looking out for Hermione. I just gave them my winningest smile and proclaimed, "It's nothing, friends look after each other. And besides; Weasley Rule #1 is always save the damsel in distress!"

Mr. Granger laughed at that, and they all waved as I threw floo powder into the fireplace and left with a shout of, "The Burrow!"

* * *

><p>Posted: 22 June 2011<br>Word Count: 1,578


	7. Chapter 7

So the past day with Hermione staying at the Burrow was actually pretty cool – somehow, her being here felt natural, like she'd been coming here for years. She kept score during our pick-up quidditch game (gotta remember to try getting that girl on a broom sometime!), and I got to take her around the property so she could see what all was around the outside of the house. I even took her down to my favorite tree down by the lake – my favorite place at home, hands down – and she loved it! I _knew_ there was a reason we were friends.

And now we're all packing up the rest of our stuff for Hogwarts. I need to sneak into Ginny's room at some point to get my hands on her trunk. I'm planning on slipping a little "Welcome to Hogwarts!" present into it for my Gin-Gin...I'm such a good big brother, I know. I'm pretty humble, too. Anyway, Ginny's present is a small stash of Honeydukes' finest, and a Weird Sisters shirt she's had her eye on. I saved up my pocket money for most of the summer so I could do this. I mean, come on – my baby sister will only start at Hogwarts once! I have a sneaking suspicion that Fred is going to be slipping her something, too. Charlie already gave her a present – a little dragon necklace he found in a Romanian market – and Bill told me he plans on owling Gin a shirt from whatever house she's sorted into (hopefully Gryffindor!) once he gets her first letter. She's a lucky girl, to have so many older brothers to make sure she's well taken care of. I just hope she remembers that once she starts dating (and we all threaten the boy at wandpoint!)

Dinner was a quiet affair...hahaha oh man. It's so hard to say that with a straight face. Dinner was chaotic as usual, of course. Afterward, I pulled Hermione aside to put my plan into action. She agreed to help me – she'd slip the present into Ginny's trunk for me when she got a moment alone in their shared room. I thanked her, said goodnight, and headed up to my room.

-oOo-

"George!" Someone's shaking me, I think. I can't tell if it's real, or just part of my dream. "GEORGE!" the mystery person hissed, and I found myself slowly entering the world of the living. Now to see who dared interrupt my golden slumber...

"HERMIONE!" I shouted, pulling my sheets up to my chin, "I'm not dressed!"

"Sorry, George. Your mum asked me to come wake you two up. I figured I'd wake you first, so you could help me wake Fred. I don't think he'll take as kindly as you to me being in his room first thing in the morning."

"Fair enough. Now just turn around a mo' so I can at least put some trousers on." I hastily grabbed the closest pair, and pulled them on quickly. "Thanks. Now, on the count of three, jump on Fred's bed."

"But..."

"Too late for hesitation, Granger!," I interrupted, "just be grateful I'm helping you wake him – he's not that friendly in the morning. Okay, ready? One...two...three! Bombs awaaaaaaay!" We jumped on Fred – I was sprawled across his torso, Hermione at his feet – and he let out a really high-pitched scream. This, of course, sent Hermione and I into a fit of laughter...until Fred threw me bodily off the bed, landing on the floor with a loud 'thunk.' "Well good morning to you too, Freddy. You awake yet?"

"Ungh," he grunted, "who's on my feet?"

"Morning, Fred," Hermione chimed.

"GRANGER?" Fred squealed, "what are you doing? Don't you realize I'm practically starkers? Unless, of course, that was your plan all along; in which case, I say come on down to this end of the bed!"

Hermione blushed scarlet and clambered off of the bed. "In your dreams, Weasley. Now come on, get up. Breakfast is ready. I'll give you boys some privacy. Don't take too long, though, or Ron might eat everything on the table before you get downstairs." She walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her.

Fred got out of bed and rounded on me. "What the bloody hell was Granger doing on my bed? Or in our room, even? Since when was anyone other than Ginny allowed in here?"

"Calm down, Freddy. She had a good reason to be here – Mum asked her to wake us up. And she was on your bed because I thought it'd be fun to give you a double-teamed wake up. Sorry if I bruised your ego or your arm or something."

Fred let out a small chuckle, despite himself. "It's fine, I'm not bruised. Just next time I'm in my boxers and there's a girl in my bed, I'd prefer to have been the one that invited her there, yeah?"

I just smirked at him and nodded. "C'mon, let's go get some breakfast. You heard the girl – we want to make it down there before Ron's inhaled it all."

-oOo-

We got to Platform 9¾ with barely seconds to spare. We all literally leaped onto the train right before it started moving, and Fred and I stumbled our way into Lee's compartment. Thank Merlin he picked one so close to the entrance.

A few minutes later, Hermione knocked on our door and came in. "Hey, do you guys mind if I join you in here? I can't find Harry and Ron anywhere."

"Sure, as long as you keep your cat away from Arabella," Lee answered.

"...Arabella?" Hermione looked confused.

"My spider," he replied, pointing at a big box on the luggage rack, "that's her crate."

Hermione nodded, and came to sit beside me. She sat and read for awhile, while Lee and Fred discussed ideas with me as usual. All of a sudden, I felt a weight on my shoulder. I turned my head slightly, and found myself face-to-face with a mass of curls. "Hermione?"

...Silence.

"Looks like she fell asleep," Fred observed, "her eyes are shut."

I nodded, then wrapped my arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer to me so she'd be more comfortable. Her steady, rhythmic breathing was relaxing me, and I found my brain going a little fuzzy. Next thing I knew, Fred was whispering my name in my ear, and I was struggling to open my eyes. "Georgie, wake up, we're almost there. You've gotta get into your robes." I grumbled in response, and cuddled myself closer to the warmth on my side. "C'mon, George. Time to get up. Let's go." Fred was a little louder this time, and I felt my brain clearing up. I went to stretch, and discovered that my left arm wasn't moving...oh, right. The warmth. What exactly is that, anyway? Oh! It's Hermione! Apparently, while we slept, we ended up shifting to where half her back was against half my front, and my arm was making a 'V' around her collarbone, hand on her shoulder. It couldn't move because her head was pinning my hand down. I tried my luck at easing my hand free, but I only succeeded in waking her.

"Huh?" She looked down at the book in her lap, and then must have suddenly realized she was leaning on someone, because she turned around quickly and blushed profusely. "Oh! George! I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep on you."

"It's no problem, Hermione. I fell asleep too. It was actually rather cosy." I gave her a wink, and got up to get my uniform from my trunk.

"Oh, are we almost there?" she asked. Fred nodded. "Alright, guess I'll head down to the bathroom to change, then. Back in a few."

-oOo-

We exited the train, and I motioned for Hermione to follow us to a carriage. As Lee was climbing in, Hermione grabbed my arm and looked at me questioningly. "George? What's pulling these carriages?"

"Nothing, Mione. They're horseless carriages." She nodded, and hummed noncommittally.

Once we got up to the castle, we went straight to the Great Hall for the Welcoming Feast. Hermione sat with us again, though I could tell she was looking around for any sign of Ron and Harry. Once McGonagall came in with the first years for the sorting, though, she voiced her concerns to me.

"They'll show up, Hermione. I'm sure they're fine." She just nodded at me.

"Creevey, Colin"

"Oh look, he looks like a little mouse!" I said to her.

"Hah, so he does," she replied, "so we're playing this game again, then?"

"Yep, of course! It's half the fun of the sorting!"

"Lovegood, Luna"

"She looks like she's high," Hermione commented.

"High what? What do you mean?" I was totally confused.

"Oh, sorry. High is what you become when you use illegal drugs in the muggle world. It's like a relaxed, subdued mindset...I don't know how to describe it, exactly, because I've never tried it."

"Hmm," I replied, still not quite sure what she meant.

The rest of the sorting passed by quickly, until we got to "Weasley, Ginny." Oh please oh please oh please! -_fingers crossed_- "Gryffindor!"

"Woohoo!" Fred, Percy and I were all shouting as we welcomed our baby sister to our house table. She came over and sat between me and Fred. I gave her a side hug, and then Fred leaned over and whispered (just loud enough that I could hear it too), "Welcome to Gryffindor, Ginbug." She smiled warmly up at him, and beamed at Percy across the table.

-oOo-

Later, when we'd finally made our way up to the tower, Lee pulled me aside. "Hey George, come with me up to the dorm for a minute? There's something I want to give you." We made our way up to the 4th year dorms, and Lee dug around in his trunk for a minute. "Ah, here we are. Now, don't get mad, but I took a picture of you and Hermione while you were asleep on the train. It's actually a really nice picture, so I thought you might like a copy. But if anyone asks where you got it, it wasn't me."

"Thanks, Lee. Don't worry, your reputation is safe with me, ya big softy." I looked at the picture in my hands. "Wow...this is a really nice picture, Lee. Thank you. D'ya think I could get a second copy? It'd make a really nice birthday present for Mione."

Lee shrugged. "Sure, no problem. I'm heading back down to the common room now, so I'll see ya later. And remember – this never happened."

I chuckled. "No worries. Thanks again, Lee."

I looked down at the picture in my hands again as he left the dorm. It's really a brilliant photo. Not to sound like a sap or anything, but my heart swelled a bit while I was examining it. She's easily become one of my best friends; I'm so glad we met on the train last year.

I made a mental note to pick up some frames in Hogsmeade. I really can't wait for her birthday now, she's going to love this. I put a sticking charm on the back of the photo, and fastened it to the wall above my side table. I think I'll go to bed early, it's been a long day. I pulled off my uniform and climbed under the duvet, snuggling into my bed clothes. Sleep beckoned quickly, and I answered with pleasure.

* * *

><p>Posted: 22 June 2011<br>Word Count: 1,992 (hey, that was a good year!)


	8. Chapter 8

_...So it just dawned on me that Hermione doesn't get Crookshanks until right before her 3rd year...oops. Oh well, I'm not going to change anything I've already posted about it. We'll just pretend that she got him in 1st year O:-)_

* * *

><p>As silently as I could, I snuck up the staircase. When I reached the 2nd year dorm, I opened the door as quietly as possible. Looking around the room, I studied all the possessions strewn about, trying to figure out which bed I was aiming for. Aha! Third from the door...I tiptoed across the floor, slooooowly pulled the bed curtains aside, and went in for the kill. Leaping onto the bed, I hit my target spot on. Which, unfortunately, led to a bloodcurdling scream, waking the dorm's other occupants up. Oops.<p>

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HERMIONE!" I yelled, pulling myself up from where I landed on the small witch, and sitting on the side of her bed.

"GEORGE?" she shouted, "Oh my gosh, what are you doing in here? How'd you get up the stairs? Godric's ghost, am I decent?"

"Hermione! Calm down. I'm here because it's your BIRTHDAY! You're a teenager, woo! I can't tell you how I got up the stairs, it'd take away all the fun. And yes, you appear to be decent. Now get up! Go get dressed! I'll wait for you in the common room." I climbed off her bed, and realized for the first time that all the other 2nd year girls were staring at me with wide eyes and open mouths. "Er, sorry about all that, ladies. Wasn't intending to wake you all up." I hurried out of the room and down the stairs, settling into my favorite squashy armchair.

A few minutes later, Hermione appeared at the bottom of the staircase. I walked over to her, and asked her to go back up two of the steps. She looked at me quizzically, but obliged. I turned my back to her, doubled over a bit, and told her to climb onto my back.

"George. No way," she protested.

"Aww, come on, Hermione. Live a little! I'm trying to spoil you rotten for your birthday, please let me?"

She sighed. "Okay, fine. But be careful!" She climbed onto my back, putting her arms around my neck. She couldn't quite figure out what to do with her legs, which made me laugh.

"Just wrap them around my waist, princess. Don't be shy." Once she had complied, I started making my way out of the common room. When we got downstairs, instead of heading into the Great Hall for breakfast, I took a detour outside. As soon as my feet touched the grass, I was off like a rocket. I ran around the lawn in circles, squiggles, figure 8s, whatever I could think of. At first, she started yelling in protest, worried about falling. But as I kept running, my grip on her tightened, and she allowed herself to just laugh and enjoy the ride. By the time I slowed down and headed back inside for our meal, we were winded and practically rolling on the floor laughing. If I were to guess, I'd say it was probably a very long time since Hermione allowed herself to let loose like that. I set her down, and we walked together into the Great Hall. When we sat down at the table, I summoned a few party hats, placing them on the heads of the people around us. Hermione looked at me and gave me a rare lopsided grin.

At the end of breakfast, I grabbed her bag and her textbooks before she could stop me, and helped her up from the table. "Where to?" She led me to her transfiguration class, and turned to get her things from me.

"Thank you, George, you've been very sweet this morning."

"Oh believe me, Hermione – the fun's just getting started!"

And true to my word, the rest of the day was an adventure as well. I charmed her goblet to spew streamers at lunch, had Peeves stop her after her last class to sing her an off-colour birthday song, and had her shower sprinkle confetti just before dinner. All in all, I think I did a pretty good job of spoiling her without having to worry about money. I think I'll pat myself on the back.

After dinner, we got back to the common room and Hermione went to curl up with a book by the fire. "Hermione, wait. Don't get too comfortable yet, I still have to give you your birthday present!"

"You have a present, too? I thought all the stuff you did today _was_ my present. You don't need to give me anything."

"Au contraire, mademoiselle, I believe I do. I already have it, so what would be the point of not giving it to you?"

She thought for a minute, and then nodded in concession. "So, what do you have for me then, Georgie?" she asked, smiling.

I reached into my bag and pulled out a brightly wrapped box. Handing it to her, she chuckled at my choice in wrapping paper. She peeled away the paper and opened the box. "Oh, George..." she breathed.

I had snuck out to Hogsmeade one day last week and happened upon the perfect frame for Lee's picture. It was red, with gold outlines, and it said 'The best of friends' along the bottom in small, gold writing. Not too shabby, if I do say so myself.

"George, this is absolutely lovely," she began, "thank you." She hugged me, repeating her thanks as she did. "You're the best friend a girl could ask for."

* * *

><p>Posted: 23 June 2011<br>Word Count: 920


	9. Chapter 9

So it's Halloween, and again, Hermione's missing from the feast. Harry and Ron aren't here either, though...I wonder what kind of trouble those three could be getting into. I wish she was here – I think she'd really enjoy seeing all these decorations. Oh well, there's always next year.

Now I'm just waiting on Fred to finish gorging himself on sweets so we can head back to the tower and work on our pranks...

FINALLY. He's done.

Back in the common room, we spot the trio settled in by the fire. "Hey, where were you three tonight? You missed the feast!"

"You'll never believe us if we tell you," Ron responded.

"Try us," Fred replied.

Hermione put down her book and turned to us. "We were at Sir Nicholas' 500th Deathday party."

..._What._

"Seriously? You've gotta be yanking my chain." I don't think I could even believe that excuse if it was Mum that had told me.

"She's not lying. Ask him yourself tomorrow," Harry replied.

"Told ya you wouldn't believe us," Ron stated.

"This is crazy! What was it like?" Now I'm just curious – what does one _do _at a deathday party, sing barbershop renditions of funeral dirges? Polish headstones? See how many walls you can pass through in 30 seconds?

"It was actually quite fascinating," Hermione replied, "there were so many other ghosts there – even some visiting from outside the castle! There was rotting food – the stronger the stench, the more likely the ghosts can "almost smell it" - and the Headless Hunt showed up. They're rather rude, if you ask me. They still won't let Sir Nick join their hunt."

I just sat there, totally engrossed in what she was saying. "Blimey. How did you guys even get invited? I would love to see something like that," said Fred.

"Eh, Nick just invited Harry, and we tagged along. No big deal. I'm actually kinda jealous of you guys, though," Ron responded, "wish I had gone to the feast. At least you had edible food there..."

"Oh, Ron," Hermione sighed, "do you _ever_ not think with your stomach?"

Fred and I grinned at each other, and simultaneously replied, "Never!"

-oOo-

It's the first quidditch match of the season, and we're playing Slytherin – joy. Even better is that the mini-Malfoy bought his way onto the team, so we have to deal with him on top of the rest of his -cough- _delightful_ team.

The game's just started, and already it's worse than I expected. For some reason, one of these bludgers has it in for Harry – no matter which direction Fred and I hit it, it always changes course and heads straight back towards him. A brief conversation with Fred later, we got Wood to call a time-out. Apparently, his 'get the snitch or die trying' mentality he forced upon Harry has sunk in, because the stupid boy is insistent upon us letting _him_ deal with the rogue bludger and have the two of us just deal with the one other and the team. Personally, I think that we could have at least split the two of us up – one stick with the team, the other with Harry and the bludger – but the decision's already been made between Harry and Oliver. Now all we can do is hope Harry can find the snitch quickly enough and manage to avoid the bludger at the same time.

..._Crack._

Bollocks. Sounds like Harry just broke something. But he's caught the snitch! And right out from under Malfoy's nose, too! Game over, Gryffindor wins!

Uh oh, looks like brainless git Lockhart is trying to help Harry. We'd better get over there before...eww. Did he just vanish all the bones in Harry's arm or something? That just doesn't look natural. Not much can make me queasy, but I think the sight of Harry's limp, boneless arm just did.

We tried to take the victory celebration to the hospital wing so we could celebrate as a team, but Madam Pomfrey was having none of it. Oh well, back to the common room, I suppose.

-oOo-

So apparently, a student was petrified today. A Gryffindor, no less. How does that even happen? Isn't that Medusa's job – to turn people to stone? Anyway, he supposedly tried taking a picture of his attacker, but all it did was fry the insides of his camera. A little creepy, if you ask me.

The Golden Trio has been spending most of their free time together, so I haven't seen much of Hermione in _ages_. It's a shame, really, because I was trying to work on having her become better friends with Fred and Lee. If she's going to be one of my best mates, I'd like her to be able to get on well with my other best mates, y'know? Oh well, there's plenty of time for that later, when they're not all sneaking off together to do whatever it is they've been doing.

In other news, I'm a little worried about Ginny. There's something going on with her that she's not telling anyone about, I can just tell. She's more skittish, looks around a lot, and spends _far_ too much time writing in her diary for a girl her age. I really wish I knew what was bothering my Ginbug – I'd like to be able to help her fix it.

And to top it all off, Lockhart's our DADA teacher this year – no wonder he made everyone get a whole set of his books. He's _far_ too impressed with himself. It's starting to grate on my nerves. I'm beginning to suspect that he didn't actually do everything he claims to have done in his books...

-oOo-

So me and Fred decided to try cheering up Ginny by changing our appearances to something gruesome and popping out from behind statues...don't know why we ever thought _that _was a good idea, it only made things worse. AND it got Percy all mad at us, threatening to tell Mum. Oops.

Even better, there's rumours going around that Harry sicked a snake on some muggle-born in his year. I don't believe he'd do something like that, but apparently, not everyone else has that much faith in him. I _do_, however, want to know if he can really talk to snakes. That'd be _wicked._

...Bloody hell. That kid that Harry supposedly set the snake on was petrified, as well as Nearly-Headless Nick. I still don't want to believe it's Harry, but this is getting weird...

* * *

><p>Posted: 23 June 2011<br>Word Count: 1,107


	10. Chapter 10

_I used a few lines from the book (CoS) in this chapter; so if you recognize it, it's not mine._

* * *

><p>"Make way for the Heir of Slytherin, seriously evil wizard coming through..."<p>

Fred and I made a point of leading Harry wherever he went, teasing about the rumours. Percy didn't find it very funny – tried to lecture us about it.

"Oh, get out of the way, Percy," said Fred. "Harry's in a hurry."

"Yeah, he's off to the Chamber of Secrets for a cup of tea with his fanged servant," I said, with a laugh.

The two of us got him around every corner – asking him who he'd attack next, trying to ward him off with talismans and such...Ginny didn't find it very funny, though. I may have to lay off a bit, for her sake...

-oOo-

Christmas was nice while it lasted...Ron and Harry showed up some time after dinner. "Hey guys, where's Hermione?"

They looked at each other, having a silent conversation with their eyes. Ron was the first to speak up. "Hospital wing, she's not feeling well."

"Well, what's wrong with her?" Ginny asked.

"Dunno, she won't tell us," Harry replied.

"Brilliant. I guess I'll have to go visit her later, then. Probably bring her some chocolate or something..." I muttered, drifting off into my own thoughts.

-oOo-

The next day, I decided to go visit Hermione after lunch. I summoned a bright pink Gerbera Daisy – her favorite flower – and headed to the hospital wing. When I got there and asked Madam Pomfrey where Hermione was, she told me she wasn't taking visitors. I asked her to at least bring her a note and the flower for me, and she obliged. I stayed just long enough to see her reach around a curtain, and made to leave.

"George?"

"Hey, Hermione. Feeling any better?"

"Not really. Madam Pomfrey? Is it okay if he comes to visit me? I won't ask about anyone else, just him, Ron, and Harry."

Madam Pomfrey sighed. "Oh, very well. Come with me, Mr. Weasley. I must warn you, though, before you step inside those curtains – her appearance is a bit...altered."

I nodded, and made my way over to Hermione's bed. When I pulled the curtain aside to step in, I gasped. "Wicked! How'd you do that, Hermione?" She looked like a cat!

She frowned, and beckoned me over. "Promise you won't tell anyone?" I nodded. "Polyjuice Potion. It was an accident, it's not meant for animal transformations..."

I was stunned. She brewed _Polyjuice_ Potion? That's NEWT level! Blimey, she's so smart. "But why, Hermione? Who'd you need to impersonate?"

She looked at me hesitantly for a moment, and then sighed. "I can trust you, right, George?"

"Hermione! Of _course_ you can!"

"Alright. Peek around that curtain and make sure no one's within hearing range..." I looked out, then pulled my head back in to nod my approval. "Millicent Bulstrode."

My jaw dropped. "Millicent? Why in the world would you want to be her?" I shuddered, picturing Hermione in Millicent's body, and then remembering last February.

"Remember, this doesn't leave this room..." She proceeded to tell me all about their plans to talk to Malfoy, and I just sat there, taking it all in. "Anyway, it turns out the hair I got from her was her cat's, not hers, which explains why I ended up like this."

"Merlin's pants," I whistled slowly. "You guys get into so much trouble. I don't think me and Fred have ever even done anything that crazy!"

"Fred and I," she corrected, "and we only do it to try and figure out the important stuff!"

"That's true."

We spent the next two hours just sitting and talking about anything and everything. It's so nice to finally get to spend some time, just the two of us, and catch up. "It's been too long. I missed this," I said.

"Missed what?" she asked.

"This," I said, motioning between the two of us. "Getting to just sit and hang out with you, catch up on everything, just talk. I feel like I never see you anymore – you're always off with Ron and Harry."

Hermione looked a little guilty at that. "Oh George, I'm sorry! I was so caught up in all this 'Heir of Slytherin' stuff that I guess I didn't realize how long it had been. From now on, I'll make sure to make some 'George time' in my schedule, for just you and me, yeah? I miss you too, you're my best friend."

I smiled at that, and checked the clock on the wall. "Oh! It's almost dinner time! I should probably head out. Want me to bring you anything later?"

Hermione smiled. "No thanks, I think I'm doing alright. Plus, Harry and Ron are coming by later to bring me my school stuff. Go on ahead to dinner, I'll see you later. Thanks so much for coming to visit me, and for the lovely flower. You're a great friend, George."

"No problem, Mione. Have a good night! I'll come see you again sometime soon." I leaned over to hug her, then gave her a smile and a wink and headed out.

-oOo-

It's Valentine's Day, and Hermione's been fur-free and out of the hospital wing for about 2 weeks now. Currently, she and I are making our way into the Great Hall for breakfast...what's this? Merlin, Morgana and Medusa, I think I'm blind! So...much...pink... Lockhart clearly enjoys this holiday far too much. I sat down next to Fred, who looked up at me from his breakfast and said, "You know, George, I don't think I've ever wanted anything more than my desire to be colorblind right now." I chuckled, agreeing with him. Lockhart was speaking, but I didn't really care to hear any of the mindless drivel that's coming out of his mouth. I caught the last few words of Ron's plea to Hermione, and her reaction...oh man. Did she _really_ send a valentine to Lockhart? I'll have to have a chat with that girl. That's just unacceptable.

-oOo-

Harry got a singing valentine on his way to class – or so Hermione tells me – and they think it was from Ginny! This is too good.

No, wait. Now it's even better; she's just recited it for me:

"_His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad,  
>His hair is as dark as a blackboard.<br>I wish he was mine, he's really divine,  
>The hero who conquered the Dark Lord"<em>

Oh, Ginny. Ginny, Ginny, Ginny. You're never going to live this down, simply because we'll never stop singing this to Harry!

-oOo-

Aaaaaaand it's April 1st! I was woken up when Hermione pounced on me, starting to tickle my sides. "Happy birthday, Georgie!" she exclaimed.

"Oh, this means war, Granger," I said amidst laughter, my voice husky from sleep, and proceeded to tickle her back. It had turned into a full-scale tickle war when I heard Fred grumble from his bed.

"Oi! Go back to sleep!"

Hermione and I ceased our battle, looked at each other, and then tumbled out of my bed. We silently counted down together from three, and then leaped onto Fred's bed and started tickling him. "Happy birthday, Freddy!" He growled, and tried to shove us off of him...but it only ended up with him joining in our tickle war.

Lee sat up, looked over, and then shouted, "Hey! You forgot to invite me!" He jumped straight off his bed and onto Fred's, and joined the battle as well. "Morning Granger! Happy birthday, Fred and George!"

A shout from the other side of the dormitory had us pausing our skirmish. "Oi! Keep it down! It's too early!" Kenneth Towler yelled.

"Sod off, Kenny," Lee replied, "it's their birthday!"

All throughout the day, we played as many pranks as we could. The best prank of the day, though, was the pair of gloves and bucket of soapy water we had following Snape around all day, periodically grabbing hold of his hair and washing it. No one could resist laughing at _that_.

All too soon, the day was over. It was enjoyable, though. And I got a nice stash of sweets again from my family and Lee. Hermione, brilliant girl that she is, gave me a muggle magic kit. I can't wait to try it out! Muggles certainly have an interesting perception of 'magic'...

-oOo-

It's the beginning of May, and we're to play quidditch against Hufflepuff today. Wood's been so obsessed with us winning this game that he's held practice practically every night. I barely have time for anything but quidditch and school – haven't gotten to hang out with Hermione in ages, and I've only gotten to see Lee because we share a dormitory. Oh well; after this game, hopefully he'll let up some.

We made our way out onto the pitch, kicked off...and then Professor McGonagall came practically running down to the pitch and announced that the match was canceled. A collective groan went out over the stadium. I chanced a look at Fred, and then flew down to where McGonagall was standing, just in time to hear her say, "Potter, I think you'd better come with me. Yes, perhaps you'd better come too, Weasley..."

I quickly caught up with them as they started walking away, and announced my presence. "Professor, what's happened? Why do you need Harry and my brother?"

She stopped and gave me a calculating look, just as Fred caught up to us. "Hmm. Yes, well, maybe you two ought to come as well. Follow me." We followed her up to the hospital wing...this can't be good. "This will be a bit of a shock," she said in a surprisingly gentle voice. "There has been another attack...another _double_attack."

My stomach dropped as we hesitantly followed her inside the wing. There was a 5th year girl with long, curly hair being tended to by Madam Pomfrey, and on the bed next to her was –

"_Hermione!_"Ron groaned. I fell to my knees, just trying to remember to keep breathing. Fred came over and put his hands on my shoulders.

"Breathe, Georgie," he whispered in my ear, "she's only petrified, she's still alive. They'll be able to restore her soon." I nodded slightly, and then scooted my way over to her bed to hold her hand. I wasn't listening to anything that was being said; I was just trying to keep it together. My best mate...I'm just grateful that Fred's with me for this. "George," he said quietly, grabbing my arm, "McGonagall's taking us back to the tower now." I nodded and stood up. I summoned another Gerbera Daisy – orange this time – and placed it on her end table before following Fred out the door.

-oOo-

The last month passed by slower than I could have ever imagined. I wasn't allowed to visit Hermione – no one was allowed in the hospital wing – but I figured out a way to help her, regardless. After Herbology one day, I stayed behind to talk to Professor Sprout.

"Yes, Mr. Weasley?" she asked.

"Professor, I was wondering if it might be possible for me to help you with the Mandrakes. I feel like I need a way to help Hermione."

Professor Sprout smiled sadly at me. "Of course you may. I hadn't realized you were so close to her...how about you come down here after classes every Monday and Wednesday, and we'll see what we can do."

"That sounds brilliant, Professor, thank you."

Fred had been shocked when I told him I was willingly helping out in the green houses twice a week. I guess he got used to it, though, because he stopped teasing me after about a week.

And now it's the end of May, and Percy's just come tearing into our dormitory. "Fred! George! McGonagall's downstairs in the common room. She wants to talk to us." We followed him down the winding stairs, and both blanched at the grave look on her face.

"Boys, I think it's best if you're sitting down for this." We sat, and waited for her to continue. "A student's been taken down into the chamber. We're not sure if we'll be able to rescue her, though we're trying..."

"Who is it, Professor?" Percy asked in a small voice.

She heaved a great sigh. "Ginny."

It's a good thing I was sitting down, because my knees would have buckled. I looked over at Fred, and he'd doubled over himself. I put my hand on his back, rubbing soothing circles on it. I knew I'd have to be strong for him, as he'd been for me when Hermione was attacked. As strong as my bond with Gin was, Fred's was stronger.

"I'm going to go to the owlery and send a note to Mum and Dad," Percy said quietly. Professor McGonagall gave a forced smile, and said she'd walk him there.

-oOo-

A long, tense while later it was announced that there was going to be a feast. Wait, a feast...that means, "GINNY'S ALRIGHT!" Fred and I shouted together, totally unplanned (for once!) We raced down to the Great Hall, not caring that we were in our pyjamas, and immediately sought out our family. Harry and Ron were there, and said that Ginny was in the hospital wing. We would be allowed to go see her after the feast. We sat down beside them and started eating, but paused a few minutes later when the Great Hall fell silent.

There, at the doors, were all the people that had been petrified. Hermione took off towards our table at a run. She was yelling, "You solved it! You figured it out!," and then fiercely hugged Harry and Ron. She then came over to hug me and Fred, and that's when I noticed the orange daisy in her hair. After we had gotten our hugs, I said to her, "nice flower," and winked.

She winked back and replied, "thanks, some nice bloke came to visit me in the hospital wing and left it for me."

I smiled at her attempt at humour. "Glad to have you back, Hermione."

* * *

><p>Posted: 24 June 2011<br>Word Count: 2,423


	11. Chapter 11

This summer went by _far_ too quickly. We spent part of it in Egypt, visiting Bill, which was totally wicked. The only bad part of the trip was when Mum caught me and Fred trying to shut Percy in a pyramid, and stopped us. I couldn't write Hermione for most of the summer, either, because when we got home from Egypt, she was just leaving for France on holiday with her parents. Oh well – I get to see her tomorrow! Her parents are taking her to the Leaky Cauldron for the night, and Harry's already staying there after running away from his aunt and uncle's, so my parents have decided to have us spend the night there, too, before leaving for Hogwarts the next day. Oh! Speaking of Hogwarts, Percy was made Head Boy – so, of course, we charmed his badge to say "Bighead Boy." One of our better ideas, in my opinion. But now, I have to get to sleep – the sooner I do, the sooner I get reunited with one of my best mates tomorrow.

-oOo-

Good morning, Diagon Alley! The sun is shining, there's people milling about, and there's a nice breeze – absolutely perfect. No, wait – now it's even more perfect; "Hermione!" I skipped my way over to my favorite bushy-haired witch, and engulfed her in a huge hug, lifting her off the ground.

With a giggle, she shouted, "George Fabian Weasley! Put! Me! Down!" I spun her around once, and then set her back on her feet. I turned to greet her parents – a handshake for her dad, and a kiss on the cheek for her mum. The three Grangers then joined my mob – er, family – and we set off down Diagon Alley to get all our school supplies. Once we finished, the Grangers headed back home, and Hermione ran off with Ron to look for Harry. Eventually, when Mum, Fred, Percy, Ginny and I returned to the Leaky, we found Ron and Hermione back with Harry in tow. Ginny said hi very shyly, not even making eye contact. Percy, however...

"Harry. How nice to see you," he said.

"Hello Percy."

"I hope you're well?" he asked, shaking his hand.

"Very well, thanks –"

"Harry!" Fred shouted, pushing his way between the two and bowing. "Simply _splendid_ to see you, old boy –"

"Marvelous," I replied, pushing Fred aside and seizing Harry's hand. "Absolutely spiffing."

Mum turned to us, and said, "that's enough now."

...she should know us better than that.

"Mum!" Fred replied, shaking her hand as well. "How really corking to see you –"

Needless to say, it's been an interesting day so far. After dinner, everyone started heading up to their rooms for bed. "Hermione!" I called.

"What's up, George?" she replied, smiling.

"Doing anything before bed? I was hoping we could hang out a bit, catch up, and maybe even cause some mischief," I said, with an angelic grin.

"Catching up, yes. Mischief, not so much," she laughed.

So we went up to me and Fred's room, and spent the next few hours just chatting and telling each other (and Fred, when he was around) funny stories. All in all, a good night.

-oOo-

Tomorrow's our first Hogsmeade weekend of the term! Fred and I are currently drawing up a list of things we need from Zonko's and Honeydukes.

"...tell me, Hermione!" Ron yelled, interrupting our discussion.

"Tell you what, Ronald? There's nothing _to_ tell!"

"Come on, Hermione, I know you're keeping something from me. Don't act like such a git."

"RONALD WEASLEY, HOW DARE YOU?" she shouted, slamming her book shut angrily. "Why do you always have to believe the world is out to get you? It's not all about you, you know."

Ron stammered angrily, and then shot back, "Of course it's not. It's all about bossy, swotty Hermione who doesn't share anything with her so-called friends. Why would it ever be about me?"

Hermione was fuming. She got up, shouting, as she headed towards the girls' dormitory. "Find someone else to go to Hogsmeade with tomorrow, Ronald. I'm not interested in spending any more time with you than I have to."

I jumped up as quickly as I could, dashing over to Hermione. "Mione! Wait! Don't disappear into your dorm just yet. Come hang out with me, Fred, and Lee. _We_appreciate your company."

"Thank you, George, but I think I need the peace and quiet of the dormitory to unwind from this." She smiled appreciatively before turning back to the stairs.

I stepped closer and lightly put my hand on her shoulder. "Wanna talk about it? I'm all ears if you need me."

Her brow furrowed as she bit her lip, thinking over my offer. "Actually, that'd be great, if you don't mind."

"No problem, Hermione. What are best mates for? Let's go up to my dorm, I have a little stash of chocolate that I think might help..."

I turned to Fred and Lee to tell them where I was going, and then we headed up the stairs. I should have paid more attention to my surroundings; if I had, I might've noticed the significant look that passed between the two of them...

-oOo-

I walked into my dorm, leading Hermione over to my bed. I grabbed a bit of chocolate from my stash, climbed onto the bed, and patted the seat next to me. Once Hermione had climbed up beside me, I pulled the curtains shut and put up a silencing charm to keep our conversation private. "So what's on your mind, Mione love?"

She sighed, and then spoke. "Ron just can't seem to understand that maybe there are some things I'd like to keep to myself, you know?"

"Yeah...I grew up with the guy, so I know exactly what you mean," I replied.

"To be fair, there actually _is_ something I'm keeping from him, but if I admitted that, he'd never leave me alone until I spilled my guts." She sighed again.

"Well, if there's anything you need to get off your chest, I'll gladly listen; you don't have to worry about me telling anyone – not even Fred, if you want. But don't feel obligated to tell me anything – I'm just here if you need me."

She nodded, and then drew up a pensive look across her face. We sat in silence for awhile; her thinking, and me just patiently waiting for her to speak. After about 5 minutes of companionable silence, I reached out onto my end table and grabbed the bar of chocolate. Breaking off two pieces, I handed one to her and then popped the other in my mouth. She smiled gratefully, and once she finished eating it, she spoke. "George," she sighed, "I do have something I'd like to tell you. It's something I've never told anyone – the only other people that know are the professors. Not even Ron or Harry knows...do you promise not to tell anyone, or even so much as hint that you know it? I'd really like to have someone I can talk to about this."

I felt a huge swell of pride at hearing that. She was trusting me with something she didn't trust _anyone_ else with. Other than Fred, I'd never had anyone trust me this much before. "Of course, Hermione. If you need to talk about it, I will swear myself to secrecy. What's going on?"

She hesitated for a moment, and then spoke. "Did you know that I'm taking 12 classes?"

My mouth fell open, and I shook my head.

"Yep. I couldn't decide which ones to choose, so I just chose all of them. And before you ask – yes, it's possible. Professor McGonagall managed to get me a time-turner, so that's how I've been attending all of my classes."

I blanched. _Time-turner?_ No way. "Hermione. You _do_ know that's the craziest idea I've ever heard, right? You're going to get so burned out! I feel like I'll need to force you to get enough food and sleep as the term progresses..."

"I know it's crazy, George, but I think I can handle it. And clearly, so do McGonagall and Dumbledore. If they didn't think I was capable, they wouldn't let me – right?"

"That's true. And Hermione, I hope you know I'm not trying to convince you this is a bad idea. I'll support you in whatever you choose to do. I just want to make sure you realize what a huge undertaking this is."

"Thank you, George. Your support means so much to me. I know this is a huge time (and energy) commitment, but I'll manage somehow – if nothing else, knowing I have your support will help push me through the rough patches." She smiled warmly at me.

We sat up in my bed talking for hours after that. The next thing I knew, I woke up and discovered it was 3am. "Hermione," I whispered, shaking her shoulder, "Hermione, wake up. We've got to get you back up to your dorm so you can go to sleep."

"Dun'wanna," she grumbled, and leaned into me.

"Do you want to just sleep here tonight?" I asked.

"Mhmm. Sleep now." She cuddled up against my arm.

"Okay, Mione, let's get you under the covers then." I shifted her back into a sitting position and removed her tie, dropping it onto the floor. I pulled off my own tie and shirt, leaving me in an undershirt and my trousers, and proceeded to tuck us both under the covers. "Goodnight, Mione."

"G'night, George."

-oOo-

I woke up the next morning and tried to get my bearings. I was still in my uniform, my bed was warmer than usual, and something was tickling my nose – not to mention the heavy object draped across my middle and chest. I opened my eyes, and encountered a bushel of brown, frizzy hair right in front of my face. I pushed it away, looked down, and discovered Hermione sleeping on me. Oh...boy, is she beautiful in the morning. I'm almost tempted to kiss her awake...MERLIN'S BEARD! Where did _that_ thought come from? This can't happen, she's my best mate. I can't allow myself to have thoughts like that. Bugger.

Right as I went to gently wake Hermione, my curtains opened. I looked straight up into Fred's curious face. "Georgie, what's Hermione doing in your bed?"

"It's not what you think, Fred. We stayed up late talking, and fell asleep."

"Under the covers?" he asked, skeptically.

"No. I woke up at 3 and tried to get her up to go back to her dorm, but she insisted on not having to move, let alone actually wake. So I did the only thing I could – just made us both comfortable." I replied, blushing a bit.

"Mhmm," Fred replied, with a slight frown on his face. "So is that how half your clothes and some of hers ended up on the floor beside your bed, then? I hope you didn't have a hand in undressing her...she's 14, George."

"Fred!" I exclaimed, "give me some credit here! All I did was take off her tie so it didn't choke her in her sleep. That's it. Just her tie. And we weren't cuddled up like this when we went to sleep; we just somehow shifted like this during the night."

Fred just nodded. "Alright, Georgie, I believe you. Just be more careful in the future, yeah? She can't get caught sneaking back into her dorm in the morning, or all hell will break loose." He pulled my curtains shut and walked away.

I sighed to myself, and then turned to find an awake, embarrassed Hermione blushing bashfully. "Thank you for letting me sleep here last night, George. I'm sorry I ended up sleeping on you, and I hope I didn't cause Fred to actually be mad at you..."

"Don't worry about it, Hermione. What happened was purely innocent; there's no reason for anyone to be mad at either of us. And if they are, that's their problem. Now let's just get you back up to your dorm, yeah? You need to go get ready so you can join us in Hogsmeade today."

She smiled, obviously appreciating my offer to join me, Fred, and Lee after her falling out with Ron yesterday. Grabbing her discarded tie, I passed it to her as she climbed out of my bed and smoothed her clothes. "Thanks again, George. I couldn't ask for a better best friend." She kissed my cheek, and walked out of my dorm.

I brought my hand up to my cheek where she had kissed it. A simple kiss on the cheek shouldn't affect me as much as it seems to be. What have I gotten myself into?

* * *

><p>Posted: 29 June 2011<br>Word Count: 2,201


	12. Chapter 12

First Hogsmeade trip today! I'm so excited. There's nothing better than a warm butterbeer with friends on a cold day. Besides a good prank, that is.

"George! Hurry up and finish your breakfast, I wanna get to Hogsmeade!" Lee called to me.

"Alright, alright, keep your hair on," I shot back. "Oh, do you guys mind if Hermione joins us today? She doesn't want to go with Ron after last night."

Lee and Fred exchanged a look that made me a little suspicious, but I dismissed the feeling when they both agreed to hang out with her as well. "As long as she doesn't mind spending far too much time in Zonko's," Fred added.

Once we had all finished breakfast, we collected Hermione from her spot further down the table next to Harry and headed out. The look on her face when she saw Hogsmeade for the first time was fantastic – she was awestruck. "First stop is always Honeydukes, Mione – gotta make sure we get the good stuff before any of it runs out!" She just smiled even wider in response, and followed me into the sweet shop.

By the time we were all ready to pay for our candy, Hermione had quite the pile – said she had to get some for Harry, too. When we walked out of Honeydukes, she noticed that there was a bookstore next door – she looked at me with pleading eyes, and I almost gave in right then. "I know you'll want to take awhile in there, Mione, so we're gonna go to Zonko's and Dervish & Banges first. Then, I'll join you in the bookstore before we meet back up with Fred and Lee for some butterbeer. Sound good?" She smiled at me, obviously thrilled that I'd even suggest accompanying her into the bookstore.

We got what we needed at Dervish & Banges in record time, and then the three of us guys practically _ran_ to Zonko's. It had been far too long since we'd been there. Hermione just walked behind us, laughing quietly to herself. We went up and down every aisle, and triple-checked our list to make sure we weren't forgetting anything, as I pulled Hermione through the store to show her everything. She was actually a lot more interested in the shop than I expected her to be – that made me happy. Finally, we finished up at Zonko's, and Hermione and I said a quick 'see you in a bit' to Fred and Lee before she all but dragged me off into Paradise on Parchment. Her whole face lit up when she first entered the store, and I don't think I'd ever seen her look so beautiful. BUGGER. There I go again. She's your best mate, George. Stop that.

-oOo-

The better part of an hour later, we left the shop laden with books – all Hermione's, of course. We had to stop before making our way over to the Three Broomsticks to shrink down the bags of books and store them in my pockets. Ever the gentleman, that's me.

We made our way into the pub and spotted Fred and Lee in a corner booth. I stopped on our way over to get us each a butterbeer and do some compulsory flirting with Madame Rosmerta, and then we headed to the table. On our way there, we passed a table with Ron, Seamus, and Dean...this can't end well.

"Hey Hermione, George," Seamus called out, and Dean nodded in each of our directions.

"So this is who you'd rather be out here today with, Hermione? My degenerate of a brother? Some friend you are," Ron proclaimed.

"Why Ronald Weasley, you –" Hermione started, but I interrupted.

"No, Mione, let me handle this one. Now you listen here, Ron. Who Hermione goes to Hogsmeade with is none of your concern. She has other friends besides you...if she can even call you that. Friends respect each other, and their right to some privacy. They don't accuse each other of absurd notions, or abandon each other for petty, selfish reasons. Get off her back. And as for me, I sincerely hope you didn't mean what you said. Degenerate? Really? I'm not trying to boast or anything, but I think I happen to be a pretty decent bloke. I do well in school, am respectful to my family and friends, and have plans for my future. All of which you probably can't say for yourself. So next time, before you go and judge someone – _especially_ one of your own brothers – take a good look at yourself first." I turned, grabbed Hermione's arm, and steered us away towards Fred and Lee. Right before we sat down in the booth, Hermione stopped me and kissed my cheek.

"Thank you, George. Those were my sentiments exactly, and I think he needed to hear that."

"No problem, Mione," I replied as I ushered her into the seat. "It's been a long time coming. That actually felt pretty brilliant."

"What was that just there?" Fred asked, pointing between the two of us.

Hermione blushed, then answered. "George just told off Ron for the both of us. For last night and something he said to me just now, and for calling George a degenerate."

Fred slammed his mug down on the table. "Degenerate? Really? If that boy thinks he can get away with rubbish like that, he's got another thing coming. Good thing we went to Zonko's – I think a little revenge is in order."

-oOo-

After a pleasant afternoon of laughing, prank-planning, and warm butterbeer, it was time to walk back to Hogwarts. Lee and Fred ended up walking a bit ahead of me and Hermione, so we got to have a little chat.

"So it seems Lee and Fred are a bit more okay with me now, don't you think?" She asked.

"Yeah, I think they're starting to get more comfortable with having you around. I, for one, am quite glad for it," I responded.

"Why's that?"

"Well, you're one of my best mates. I would hope all of my best mates would get along, especially since I plan on keeping you around for awhile." Why did I just add that last part in? She probably thinks I'm weird now...

She just smiled and linked arms with me. "Well, that's good. I don't plan on letting you go anytime soon, either."

* * *

><p>Posted: 5 July 2011<br>Word Count: 1,090


	13. Chapter 13

Today's Halloween! We've decided to hold a party after the feast, and we've been setting up all day. But now, it's dinnertime! Fred and I walked into the Great Hall, and happened to spot Lee sitting across from Hermione. I slid in beside her, with my twin across from me.

"Hey, George!" Hermione exclaimed. "Aren't the decorations brilliant? There's even live bats!"

"That's not a very nice thing to say about Professor Snape, Mione," I teased. "But seriously – I forgot this was your first proper Halloween feast! I take it you're enjoying it so far, then?"

"Oh yes, it's quite spectacular. It even has me a little excited for the party in the tower tonight!"

I grinned, and faked shock. "You, using the words 'excited' and 'party' in the same sentence – what's the world coming to?"

She just laughed and swatted my arm, and we both shifted our attention back to our food. Later, in the common room, the party was in full swing. The butterbeer was flowing, there was candy on every surface possible, and games were being played. I challenged Lee to a round of bobbing for apples, and we all had a good laugh when he emerged from the water with wet, dripping dreadlocks. At one point, I could have sworn I saw Hermione coming down the boys' stairs, but when I blinked, she had disappeared from view. Hrmm.

-oOo-

By the end of the night, I was exhausted but happy. I dragged myself up the stairs to my dorm, and discovered a little box and a note on my bed.

"George,  
>Happy Halloween!<br>Thanks for making my first  
>Hogsmeade trip so great.<br>-Hermione"

I smiled, opening the box, and smiled even wider when I saw the contents. Ice Mice! My favourite! I turned to show Fred and discovered both him and Lee looking over to me with small boxes in their hands as well.

"Ice Mice?" Fred asked.

I nodded. "Bertie Bott's? Cockroach Clusters?" I asked Fred and Lee, respectively. They both nodded as well.

"Seems our little bushy-haired friend was being a bit sneaky and observing what we bought while at Honeydukes!" Lee spoke.

I just smiled, and Fred looked over at me with a curious grin.

-oOo-

It's Christmas break! I'm so glad; it'll be nice to have some holiday cheer to counteract the feeling the dementors have caused throughout the grounds. We're all staying behind this year, it'll be nice to (hopefully) have a quiet, uneventful Christmas. I plan on spending this Christmas break playing lots of exploding snap, having a plethora (good word, right? I know!) of snowball fights, and brainstorming with Fred to our hearts' content.

They're letting us take a trip to Hogsmeade tomorrow; guess someone on the staff forgot to do their Christmas shopping. Poor Harry still can't go to the village, even if it _is_ break; no matter, Fred and I have plans...

Me and Fred hid behind a tapestry on the 3rd floor. We heard Harry coming down the corridor, and snatched him as he passed by us, putting a hand over his mouth and pulling him behind the tapestry.

We proceeded to explain the Marauder's Map to him, and then told him it was his to keep. He looked pretty excited once he realized he could use it to sneak into Hogsmeade, and thanked us profusely.

We decided after parting ways with Harry to go get a snack from the kitchens before heading back to the tower. On our way there, however, we heard what sounded like Hermione and several male voices. Freezing in place, we stayed as quiet as we could to take in the situation. Fred peered around the corner, then motioned for me to do the same. It was Hermione, alright, and several Slytherins that didn't look too friendly. One of them stood directly behind her, holding her hands in place, while the other let his hands wander across her stomach, slowly rising up closer to her chest. Before I could stop it, a low growl rose up from deep in my throat, and the lecherous boys froze and looked around. I chanced a quick look at Fred, and he nodded. We jumped around the corner, both shooting off a fierce 'stupefy' at each of the Slytherins. Our targets hit right on the mark, and the boys fell to the ground. Luckily for us, Professor McGonagall chose that moment to turn the corner.

"Mr. and Mr. Weasley! Miss Granger! What is the meaning of this?" She shouted.

"Professor, it's not what it looks like!" Hermione started.

Fred, to my surprise, decided to cut in and come to her defence. "Professor, they had their slimy hands all over our Hermione! We turned the corner to find one holding her back while the other let his hands wander on her body! We had to step in and rescue her."

Professor McGonagall looked shocked. "Miss Granger, is this true?"

Hermione simply nodded, looking slightly ashamed.

The professor just grimaced. "This is nothing to be embarrassed about, Miss Granger. You were outnumbered, and they were older, stronger wizards than you. You're quite lucky Misters Weasley happened to find you before they got too carried away. Now, if you don't mind, I'll need to wake these two boys and take them to see their Head of House and the Headmaster. Will you be alright to come along to file your report?"

Hermione frowned. "I'll go with you, Mione. You don't have to do this alone," I said, grasping her hand and giving it a gentle squeeze.

"I will too," Fred added.

Hermione smiled and squeezed my hand back. "Thank you, guys. You're great friends."

"It's nothing," I replied.

"Yeah...besides, we live by the Weasley Code of Conduct, of which rule #1 is to always save the damsel in distress," Fred said, grinning.

Professor McGonagall gave us a fond smile, and Hermione giggled. They each cast an 'enervate' at one of the stunned boys, and we all started making our way up to the Headmaster's office.

-oOo-

The boys were banned from Hogsmeade and Quidditch for the rest of the year, _and_ got a month's worth of detention with McGonagall once school starts again! Justice has been served, and I'm quite glad for it.

But in other news, IT'S CHRISTMAS MORNING! I jumped off my bed and onto Fred's. "Freddy! Freddy, wake up! It's Christmas!"

He immediately shot up in bed with a delighted grin on his face. "CHRISTMAS!"

Lee rolled over in his bed and looked at us. "Happy Christmas, Gred and Forge!"

"Happy Christmas, Lee!" We chimed.

We all scrambled off the beds and immediately dove into our pile of presents. New sweater from Mum...I tossed it to Fred just as he tossed me his, and we both pulled them on. Some fudge from Mum and Dad, candy from Ron, Ginny, Percy, and Lee, a book on curses from Bill, dragon scales from Charlie!, a traditional sack of Chocolate Frogs from Fred...and it seems there's one more labeled for both me and my twin. "Oi, Freddy, c'mere!"

Fred looked up from his gifts and gave me a curious glance. "What's up?"

"Seems there's one here for both of us." He came over, and we pulled off the paper together. We both gasped as we took in the gift.

It was a really fancy black, hardcover, leather-bound book, with "WEASLEYS' WIZARD WHEEZES" stamped across it in a bright magenta. I carefully pulled back the cover, and looked at the first page. It was a table of contents, but there was only one thing listed – Self-Propelling Custard Pies. I turned the page, curious, and found a...recipe, I guess you could call it...for making said prank. Everything was in there – ingredients, instructions, even a diagram.

"Merlin's beard," Fred breathed. "Is that Hermione's handwriting?"

"So it is," I replied. "I guess we know who gave this to us, then."

"This is the most wicked present either of us has ever gotten. I'm beginning to see why you're so fond of the girl."

I just smiled at Fred, and got up to show the book to Lee.

-oOo-

We went down to the common room after opening all our presents, to meet our friends on our way to breakfast. The second I spotted Hermione, I ran over to give her a hug, but Fred beat me to it. He grabbed her around the waist, lifted her into the air, and spun her around. Putting her down, he kissed her on the top of her head and beamed at her. "Hermione Granger, you are an angel."

I shoved Fred over. "Move over, Freddy, it's my turn!" I grinned at Hermione and hugged her tightly around the middle, then peppered her face with kisses. "You're better than an angel, Oh Goddess of Wisdom and All Things Clever. That was the greatest gift anyone's ever given us – even better than our brooms!"

Hermione blushed. "Oh hush, it was nothing."

"It most certainly was NOT nothing!" Fred exclaimed. "You're our first investor!"

She smiled at that. "Am I really? Well, I guess now is as good a time as any, then, to tell you about the spells I've placed on it. There's one in place that, if you write the title of a product the same way I did, it'll automatically update the table of contents with it. Also, when it's closed, if you tap it with your wand two times while thinking about which invention you want to see, you'll open right to it. And finally, I've placed as many protective spells as I could to make it indestructible. I made a list of those spells in case there are more you know that I might've missed."

I was speechless. She really put a lot of thought into this gift!

"That's it, the decision's been made. You're going into business with us; Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes can't afford _not_ to have your brain involved," Fred proclaimed proudly.

Hermione and I just laughed; though to me, it didn't seem like such a bad idea...

* * *

><p>Posted: 9 July 2011<br>Word Count: 1,723


	14. Chapter 14

_Don't kill me! I wasn't planning on having him date Katie, but it just kind of happened. Don't worry, this will all resolve itself eventually._

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><p>So it's February, and you know what <em>that<em> means...Valentine's Day. Katie Bell asked me to Hogsmeade, and I'd never been on a date before, so I figured why the heck not? It actually turned out to be a pretty great day, so I think we're going to try seeing each other again. If I thought Fred and Lee were shocked when I said I was going on a date with her, it was nothing compared to their reactions when I told them how it went. I don't see what the big deal is; I'm 15, shouldn't this be normal? Anyway, at the end of the day, Hermione came to see how my date went, and smiled when I told her about it...though it didn't quite seem to reach her eyes.

"Hermione, what's wrong? You look like something's bothering you."

"Nothing's wrong, George, I'm fine. Just a bit tired is all, I suppose. I actually think I'm going to head on up to bed. Oh wait! I forgot – Romilda Vane gave this to me earlier, asked me to pass it along to you." She handed me a piece of parchment, and turned towards the dormitory stairs. "Goodnight, George, Fred, Lee," she said, nodding in each of our directions, and then heading up to bed. I looked down at the piece of parchment in my hands, missing the look that passed between Lee and my twin.

Uh oh, it's a poem again...

_Georgie porgie, pudding and pie  
><em>_You're the apple of my eye  
><em>_Your eyes are like the ocean blue  
><em>_Your hair, the fire before the floo  
><em>_Your freckles make you look so sweet  
><em>_Looking at you is like a treat  
><em>_You sneak and prank around the school  
><em>_And make me bumble like a fool  
><em>_You're every witch's ideal man  
><em>_And I might just be your biggest fan  
><em>_I hope you liked this little song  
><em>_Please be my Valentine? You won't go wrong!  
><em>_-Romilda Vane_

Meanwhile, Fred and Lee are dying of laughter. Apparently, they'd been reading over my shoulder.

"Your hair, the fire before the floo?" Fred laughed.

"Looking at you is like a treat!" Lee continued.

"Oh, sod off, you two. Looks like I'm going to have to break a first-year's heart again this year. Why does this always happen to me?"

"Because you're so utterly delectable, Georgie!" Fred exclaimed.

I just cuffed his ear and got up to find Romilda. Spotting her, I headed over and cleared my throat to get her attention. "Romilda?" I started. "Erm, I read your poem. Thank you, it was very flattering, but I have to tell you I already have a Valentine this year. Sorry you didn't know that sooner; I admire your courage, though. It's not often a first-year would put themselves out there for a fifth-year like that, you know."

"Oh," she replied, "Well, thanks for being so nice about it, I suppose."

"No problem." I walked away, and headed back over to Fred and Lee. "I think I'm going to head up to bed, guys. It's been a long day."

"K, goodnight George," they responded.

I nodded in response, and headed upstairs. Once in my dorm, I switched out my clothes for pyjamas, and climbed into bed. I fell asleep trying to figure out what might be bothering Hermione so much...

-oOo-

Sirius Black broke into Gryffindor Tower tonight! Dumbledore's having us all sleep in the Great Hall in sleeping bags as a precautionary measure, but I think that's dumb. He obviously won't try to come back, after leaving such blatant evidence. Oh well.

Currently, I find myself sandwiched between Hermione and Fred, with Ginny at my feet. I rolled over to face the fairer of my best mates. "Hermione?" I whispered.

"Hrmm?" she sleepily mumbled.

"Are you actually awake?"

"Kinda. I can be. You okay?" She replied, keeping her eyes closed.

"I just wanted to check to make sure you weren't mad at me. You aren't, are you?"

"Of course not, why ever would you think that?"

"I just barely see you anymore..."

"George. You, of all people, should know how busy I am with school. And besides; you've been spending all your time with Katie lately."

I looked at her, surprised. "Oh. Have I really been spending that much time with her?" She nodded. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize. I'll start making more time for you...I feel like we've had this conversation before. I really like her, though. I think I'm going to ask her to be my girlfriend."

Hermione opened her eyes at my admission. "Are you now? Well that's good."

I looked at her warily. "Are you not okay with this? Do you not like her?"

"George, relax," she sighed. "If she makes you happy, then that's all I can ask for, yeah? Just make sure she knows that if she ever does anything to hurt you, if she harms one hair on your head, I'll hex her to within an inch of her life."

I smiled at that. "Will do, Mione. I'm glad I have your support."

"Always, Georgie. Now get some sleep, it's been a long day."

"Okay. Goodnight, princess," I replied, kissing her forehead.

"Night, George."

-oOo-

Katie agreed to be my girlfriend today! None of my friends seem to be as excited as I am. I mean, of course that makes sense, but I just expected my best mates to show _some_ joy at my new-found happiness, ya know? Oh well. I suppose that old cliché is true; the day I bring home a bird my family actually approves of and is excited about, I'll know I'll have found The One. But for now, a bit of fun won't hurt, no? I actually _do_ like the girl...

Anyway, it seems Hermione and I are becoming a bit distant lately. I'm pretty sad about this; I miss my best friend. I can't help but think it has something to do with Katie, but she won't admit to anything being wrong. I know she's my best mate, and I know her really well, but _man_, girls are bloody _confusing._

-oOo-

I sat up slowly in my bed, getting my bearings as I woke. Then it hit me – it's April 1st. My birthday! Guess I'm not getting an exciting wake up like last year...it's time like these I wish I was still really close to Hermione. Don't get me wrong, we're still great friends; we just don't see each other as often since I started dating Katie.

I got out of my bed and quietly slipped into Fred's, wrapping myself around him. I leaned up close to his ear, brushing his hair away, and whispered in the most seductive, feminine voice I could, "Good morning, Freddy. Happy birthday."

He hummed happily, and cuddled up closer to me, sighing. From his bed, I could see Lee stifling his laughter behind his hand. It was taking all of my willpower not to laugh myself. I started stroking his hair, and whispered again, "Wake up, Freddy." I then dropped my voice and said a little louder, "Wake up." His eyes popped open at that, and he started scrambling to get away from me and fell out of bed.

"GEORGE!" he called up to me from the floor.

I peered down at him over the side of his bed, and gave him my most innocent smile. "Yes, Freddy dear?"

"I'll get you back for that!" he cried, jumping up and tackling me on the bed.

-oOo-

We made our way downstairs to the common room, where I spotted Katie waiting for me on one of the couches. She got up and walked over to me, greeting me with a kiss and a "Good morning, George." She grasped my hand and pulled me along to go to breakfast.

We were sitting in the Great Hall, eating our breakfast, when Hermione came over and handed me and Fred each a box. "Happy birthday, boys! It's your Sweet Sixteen!"

"Thanks, Hermione!" I started.

"What's a Sweet Sixteen?" Fred asked.

Hermione laughed. "It's a tradition in the Muggle world where girls get a big celebration for their sixteenth birthday."

Katie took this moment to turn to me, a look of surprise on her face. "Wait, George – it's your birthday? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I thought you knew," I responded, baffled. "You've only known us for 4 years..."

Hermione glared daggers at her.

Fred, sensing the discomfort of the situation, chose that moment to open his gift. "Blimey, Granger! This is brilliant!"

I looked over to see that he had an extensive box of potions ingredients. Opening mine, I found the same. "Yeah, wow, Hermione! This is great, thank you! For a rule-follower, you seem to like encouraging our pranks an awful lot." I smiled at her, and stood to give her a hug. Now, it was Katie's turn to glare daggers at Hermione.

I wish I knew what their problem with each other was...

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><p>Posted: 10 July 2011<br>Word Count: 1,543


	15. Chapter 15

__Snape won the MTV Harry Potter World Cup! I loved hearing Alan Rickman's response when they presented him with the trophy :D__

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><p>After a long, boring History of Magic class, Fred and I walked out into the hall to find Hermione waiting for us.<p>

"You'll never guess what I just did, guys!" she exclaimed.

"Go on then, tell us!" Fred encouraged.

"I walked out in the middle of Divination...and I'm never going back!"

A huge grin lit up my face, and I picked her up and spun her around. Putting her down, I kissed the top of her head. "That's brilliant, Mione! I'm glad you're lightening your workload...and rebelling! We'll make a prankster of you yet."

She giggled, and playfully bumped my shoulder. Just at that moment, Katie caught up to us on our way to lunch. Reaching between me and Hermione, she grabbed my hand and pulled me back behind my best mates to walk with her. "Oh, hey Katie."

"Hi, Georgie."

I hesitated awkwardly for a moment. "Er, Katie? Would you mind not calling me that?"

She stopped in her tracks. "Don't Fred and Hermione call you that?"

I grimaced. "Yeah, they do, but there's a difference when one of my mates calls me that versus my girlfriend. I'm not really a pet names kind of bloke."

"Alright..." she replied. She looked forward after that, and seemed to be trying to stare a hole into the back of Hermione's head.

We walked in silence for a few minutes, then I turned to my girlfriend. "Katie? You alright? What did the back of Hermione's head ever do to you?"

Katie shook her head, as if coming out of a trance, and responded. "Nothing, it's nothing. I'm fine, George."

I gave her a skeptical look, but I suppose I should believe her, right?

-oOo-

"Hermione! I hear you punched Malfoy! Is it true?" I shouted as I ran across the grounds to meet her.

She smiled, almost bashfully, but it became a full-on grin when she nodded at me. "Yes. And it felt bloody _brilliant_."

I put on my best appalled face and clutched my heart. "Language, Hermione!" She giggled. "No, but really. Our little Hermione's growing up! I'm so proud of you."

Just then, Fred came over to us. "Hey, Granger. Do you mind if I steal my twin? I need to talk to him about something."

She shook her head and responded. "No, that's fine, go ahead. I need to head over to the library anyway. See you later Fred, George."

"Bye Hermione," we chimed together.

"So what's up, Fred?" I asked, genuinely curious – I had no idea what could be bothering him.

"Wait 'til we get back to the dorms."

We walked the whole way back to the dorm in silence, and I was getting more and more nervous with every step. This was pretty out of character for Fred.

We made it back to the dorm, and Fred climbed onto his bed, patting the seat next to him. I sat down beside him and he closed the curtains, putting up a silencing charm. "Fred, talk to me. You're starting to scare me."

He sighed. "What are you doing, Georgie?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why are you dating Katie?"

"Because I like her! Why else?"

"What about Hermione?"

I looked at him, confused. "What about her, Fred?"

He sighed again. "I mean, how do you feel about her in all of this?"

"I still don't understand where you're going with this, brother. She's my best mate. And she told me herself that she was okay with me dating Katie; she was even happy for me!"

Fred just studied me for a moment, then spoke again. "Alright, Georgie, I believe you. I just wanted to make sure you knew what you were doing, is all."

I smiled at him. "No worries, Freddy. I'm a big boy." I leaned forward and gave him a hug, and then ruffled his hair. "Are we okay here? Is it safe for me to head down to the common room now?"

Fred nodded, then waved his hand as if dismissing me. "Yeah, we're okay. Go find your bird; I'll see you later."

I headed down to the common room, and spotted Katie sitting on a couch near the fire. I made my way over and sat down beside her, pulling her into my lap. "Hey, Katie."

"Hi, George," she said, smiling. She kissed me, and then whispered against my lips, "I missed you."

I grinned at her before responding. "I missed you too." I kissed her lightly, and grinned even wider when she pulled me back in for more.

"Eurgh, can you two please not do that in front of me? I'd like to be able to eat dinner later," Ron interrupted, grimacing.

I looked up at him, and noticed Hermione sitting next to him with a frown on her face. As she noticed me looking at her, I saw a flash of something – hurt, maybe? – pass across her face, but as soon as it was there, it was gone. I barely had time to process that before Katie was dragging me toward the stairs. "Come on, George. I want to be able to snog you in peace."

Who am I to turn down a request like that? I followed her to the stairs, and hit the banister in just the right spot to let me climb the girls' side. Katie led me up to the fourth year dorm, and let's just say that I looked - and felt - thoroughly snogged by the time I made it downstairs to go to dinner.

-oOo-

A few days later, I walked into the common room and happened upon a fight between Ron and Hermione. Uh oh, this could get ugly.

"You spend way too much time with them! Why don't you ever spend time with me? I'm your best friend!" Ron shouted.

"No, Ronald, Harry and George are my best friends. You lost that title when you saw fit to try and micromanage every detail of my life, and tell me who I can and can't hang out with. And how can you tell me I spend too much time with them when most of my time is spent with you and Harry? I _rarely _see any of them these days – _especially_ George."

Ron sputtered, trying to come up with a retort to that. "B-b-but, well, that's just beside the point!"

Hermione let out a loud 'hrmph,' and turned to walk away. I ran forward, grabbing her arm and turning her around. Nodding my head towards the boys' dorms in question, she nodded back and stormed up the stairs ahead of me to my dorm. She sat down on my bed and grabbed a pillow, hugging it to herself. I climbed up on the bed behind her and wrapped my arms around her small frame. This apparently was her undoing, as she burst into angry tears. I just held her and let her cry, non-verbally using my wand to close the curtains and cast a silencing spell. When she had finished crying, she pulled out of my embrace and laid herself down in the bed, facing me.

"Do you want to talk about it, love?" I asked quietly.

She shook her head. "No, I just need some companionship right now, I think."

I laid down on the bed, facing her, and started rubbing up and down her arm. "Okay. We can just lay here, then, until you feel better. If you decide you want to talk about it, or anything at all, feel free. I'll be right here for you if you need me."

She smiled, and then sighed, closing her eyes. "Thanks, George. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"No problem, Hermione. That's what I'm here for." I kept rubbing her arm as we lay there, until I noticed she had fallen asleep. I just lay there with her, off in my own little world, just thinking.

-oOo-

A little while later, I was startled out of my thoughts when I heard a voice call my name. I poked my head out of the curtains and spotted Katie. I held up a finger to my mouth to indicate that she should be quiet, and then responded. "Katie. What's up?"

"Fred said I would find you here. Who's sleeping?"

"Hermione," I answered quietly.

Her face paled considerably, then quickly turned a bright red. She looked positively _livid_. "WHAT?" she shouted. "WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS SHE DOING IN YOUR BED, GEORGE?"

Hermione opened her eyes at that. "No. Go back to sleep, Mione. I'll deal with this." She laid her head back down on the pillow, and I climbed out of the bed, casting 'muffliato' around me and Katie. "What's your problem, Katie? I _told_ you she was sleeping!" I hissed

"My _problem_, George, is that you've got another girl sleeping in your bed with you! How else am I supposed to react to finding that?" She was fuming.

"Shes' not just some other girl, Katie, she's my best mate!" I really didn't understand what the issue was; it's just Hermione!

"I don't care if she's your best mate, George! She's still a girl! It's not proper to have other girls sleep in your bed with you when you're in a relationship!"

"Have you ever known me to do something just because it's proper? And it's not like anything's going to happen! Would this have been an issue if it were Fred or Lee in her place?"

"Of course it wouldn't be an issue – they're not female! And you _say_ nothing was going to happen, but how can you be sure?"

I was beyond angry at this point – I was seething. This is ridiculous! What does she take me for? "I still don't understand why you have such an issue with me having a female best mate. Clearly, you don't trust me. Maybe we should reevaluate this relationship."

She blanched. "Maybe we should." And with that, she turned around and stormed out of my dorm.

I just stood there for a minute, collecting myself, and then walked back over to my bed. I put my hand on Hermione's shoulder and gently shook her. "Mione, I'm gonna go for a fly to let off some steam. Will you be okay here by yourself?"

She nodded. "Everything alright?"

"Yeah, just had a big fight with Katie is all. I'll be back in a little while. Stay as long as you'd like, but don't wait up for me if you want to leave. I won't be offended if you're not here when I get back."

I grabbed my broom and headed to the pitch. It's gonna be a long night...

-oOo-

So we've just boarded the Hogwarts Express to head home for the summer hols. I spent an hour or so with Fred and Lee before I decided to go find Katie to try and patch things up. I walked the train for about 5 minutes until I spotted her through a compartment window...snogging someone else. I threw the door open, and they jumped apart in surprise. "Katie, what the hell!" I noticed the guy she was with was one of my dorm mates. "Kenny?"

"What do you want, George?" Katie snapped.

"What do I want? What do I WANT? I want an explanation for this! You blow your top when I lay in the same bed as my best mate, but then expect me to stand by and watch as you snog someone else?"

"You're not my boyfriend, George! YOU broke up with ME!"

"I never broke up with you, Katie. I only said we should take some time to think about where we stood in this relationship. But now, honestly, I couldn't care less about where we stand...have fun with Kenny, we're through."

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><p><em>Happy now? ;)<em>_  
><em>

Posted: 11 July 2011  
>Word Count: 2,035<p> 


	16. Chapter 16

__I surpassed 100 story alerts for this the other day! WOOO!__

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><p>It's been a long, uneventful summer. But fear not – the Quidditch World Cup is tomorrow! We're about to leave to pick up Harry, and Hermione will be joining us at the ridiculous-o-clock breakfast hour tomorrow morning.<p>

"Fred! George! Time to go!" Dad shouted. Fred and I ran downstairs, but not before stuffing a few of the trick sweets we'd been developing into our pockets. We joined Dad at the fireplace, and followed him through the floo to Harry's Muggle relatives' house. Arriving there, we all stood in awe, taking in all of the Muggle...appliances, I think they're called?

Harry came thundering down the stairs to meet us – I don't think I've ever seen a bigger smile on his face. He looked so relieved to be leaving there.

Dad told us to take Harry's trunk and head through first. So we did – but first, Fred "accidentally" dropped a toffee from his pocket. We went over to grab Harry's things, and noticed his cousin pick it up and stuff it in his mouth out of the corner of our eyes. We gave each other a look as we picked up the trunk, and tried to suppress the grins sneaking their way onto our faces. Within seconds, Dudley's tongue started swelling. Dad looked at us with a frown on his face and demanded we go through the floo immediately. We complied, and Harry came through moments after us, grinning like a nutter.

"What did you two do to him?" he exclaimed.

"_We_ didn't do anything," Fred replied.

"Yeah, it's not our fault he couldn't keep his greedy paws off of what fell out of our pockets," I continued.

Harry laughed and shook his head. "Thanks, guys, I think that made my whole summer. Did you see the look on their faces before you left?"

"We caught a glimpse, but that wasn't the point of it. We got enough information out of seeing how fast his tongue swelled," Fred answered him, with a mischievous grin.

"You mean you hadn't tested those yet?" Harry asked.

"Not really, no," I responded, "though we've decided to call them Ton-Tongue Toffees."

"Brilliant," Harry said, looking positively thrilled. "Thanks."

-oOo-

All of a sudden, I was being shaken awake. I sleepily opened my eyes, and found Hermione sitting on the edge of my bed. "Mione? What time is it? When'd you get here?"

"It's time for breakfast, the World Cup is today! I just got here." She patted my leg. "Wake up, Georgie, I have to wake everyone else up now."

I nodded, and watched her try to wake up Fred. He's a lot less friendly in the morning...good thing I was awake to run interference, because he tried throwing things at her before he realized who she was. "Whoops...sorry, Granger," he said, bashfully.

"Don't worry about it, Fred. Now get dressed, you two, and go downstairs! Your mum says breakfast is nearly ready." She headed out of our room to go wake up Ron and Harry, and I slid out of bed to get dressed.

A few minutes later, Fred and I slunk sleepily down the stairs. "Morning, Mum."

"Morning, boys. Everything packed for your trip?"

We nodded and tucked into our breakfast.

A short while later, we were trudging our way up the hill to the portkey, and I was enjoying a nice chat with Hermione. I told her about how Fred and I each got 3 OWLs, and she reacted the exact opposite way that our mum did. She was so proud that we even cared enough to put forth the effort to earn those three. We talked about all sorts of other things, catching up after having only had sporadic owl correspondence over the summer.

"Arthur, over here!" a man called.

Dad introduced him as Amos Diggory, one of his coworkers at the Ministry. A boy of about 17 gracefully fell out of a tree just then. "And this strapping young lad must be Cedric!" Dad exclaimed, shaking his hand.

I didn't miss the look that passed between Hermione and Ginny upon seeing Cedric for the first time. For some reason, I found that it bothered me.

-oOo-

The World Cup was brilliant! Just as Fred and I predicted (and bet on, but don't repeat that in front of my parents!), Bulgaria (well, more specifically Viktor Krum) caught the snitch, but Ireland still won. Fred and I had bet our entire savings on it, so we made quite a bit of gold. Even Hermione was excited during the match. All of us were decked out in Ireland's colors (well, except Harry, he was cheering for Bulgaria).

We were all still full of energy and excitement after the match, and were celebrating back in the tent. All of a sudden, Dad came rushing in and cut our debauchery short, telling us we had to leave immediately and get back to the portkey. Me and Fred were put in charge of Ginny; we stayed together almost the whole time, though I lost track of them for about 30 seconds along the way. Eventually, we all made it back and portkeyed home, only to find Mum in a right state. Apparently, word of the attack had gotten out faster than we expected.

-oOo-

The train ride back to Hogwarts was, for the most part, miserable. Angelina, Alicia, and Katie decided to join me, Fred, and Lee in our compartment. Fred spent the whole time mooning over Angelina (boy, has my brother got it _bad_) and Lee was flirting shamelessly with Alicia, so I got stuck with only Katie for company. _Perfect_.

Eventually, I just gave up and went to find Hermione and Ginny. When I got there, I found my sister staring longingly at Harry, who was playing Exploding Snap with Ron, and Hermione was talking to...Roger Davies? No wait...that's not just talking; he's _flirting_ with her! Well _this_ is awkward. I've never liked Davies much, but I know if I try convincing Hermione to stay away from him, I'll probably get hexed...

I tried to distract myself by watching the guys play Exploding Snap, so as not to eavesdrop on Hermione and Roger's conversation, but I couldn't help but overhear his parting words as he left the compartment. "So the first Hogsmeade weekend, then?" he asked.

"It's a date," Hermione responded, smiling.

As soon as the door shut behind him, I rounded on Hermione. "A date? With ROGER DAVIES? You can't be serious." I exclaimed.

"Yes, I'm serious, what's the problem?"

"I just never really liked Davies, is all. Do you even know him?"

Hermione huffed. "Not really, but that's what the date's for, isn't it? Besides. He's the first person to ask me on a date, and I'd like to at least try it."

"Fair enough, I can't deny you that," I sighed. "Only, just be careful, yeah? I don't want to see you get your heart broken."

"Don't worry, George. I'm a big girl, I know when to walk away."

-oOo-

So apparently, Hogwarts is hosting the Triwizard Tournament this year. The students from Beauxbatons are all _extremely_ attractive birds, and the ones from Durmstrang are all burly blokes. Including _Viktor Krum_. I mean, how cool is that?

Fred and I are totally going to figure out a way to trick the Goblet of Fire into thinking we're of age. It shouldn't be _that_ hard, should it? Ickle Ronnie thinks we're gonna tell him our plan if we figure it out so he can enter too...fat chance. We're in it to win it! Though to be honest, we'd totally be okay with it if Angelina was chosen – we can stand behind her.

First Hogsmeade weekend, and it's just me and Fred today. Lee's on a date with Alicia, Ginny's with Harry, Ron with his dorm mates, and Hermione with Davies. I bet he takes her to Madam Puddifoot's – I can only imagine her reaction to that. She'd hate that place!

Anyway, it turned out to be lucky that Fred and I are alone, because we ran into Ludo Bagman at the Three Broomsticks. Remember that bet I told you about, from the World Cup? The one involving all our savings? Well, it turns out Bagman paid us in Leprechaun gold...obviously, it disappeared. We were left with nothing. We'd been trying to get in contact with Bagman via owl for a few months, but the tosser seems to be avoiding us. Well, since we happened upon him so easily in the pub, we figured we'd give it another shot. After a few minutes, during which the thieving bastard tried to weasel his way out, we were approached by a group of goblins. Apparently, he owes them money, too. We had to walk away empty-handed, as we were _not_ planning on ticking off the goblins. We don't think we're ever going to get our money.

At the end of the day, I found Hermione curled up in an armchair by the fire in the common room, and figured I should probably ask her about her date.

"It was alright," she replied. "I don't think I'll be going out with him again, though. He's shallow, vain, and not very bright. And he couldn't stop talking about himself. He _did_ kiss me, though, at the end of the date. I can't say I didn't enjoy that..."

I cringed internally. "Where did he take you?"

"Madam Puddifoot's," she said with a frown.

I chuckled. "Figured you wouldn't like that place. Here, I brought you this, didn't know if you'd have a chance to go to Honeydukes." I handed her a pack of Toothflossing Stringmints, and she gave me a huge grin.

"Thank you, George! I was actually disappointed we didn't stop by there, because I'd been craving these."

"Glad I could help, Mione," I said with a smile. We spent the rest of the evening swapping stories about our day in Hogsmeade, and just enjoying each other's company.

-oOo-

As much as I hate to admit this, we were wrong and Hermione was right. We tried using an aging potion to put our names in the Goblet. She was insistent on it not working – guess we should have listened to her. We got over the age line, but as soon as we'd dropped the parchments with our names on them into the Goblet, we were thrown backwards and sprouted long white hair and beards. Though, to be honest, it was probably worth the humiliation just for the sheer hilarity of it all.

So it's Halloween, and the Goblet's decided – we have our four champions. Yes, you heard me right, I said four. Krum was picked from Durmstrang, some bird with a rhymy name – Fleur something – from Beauxbatons, and Cedric Diggory (the one from the World Cup, remember?) from Hogwarts. And somehow, Harry Potter. Yeah, don't ask me how or why it happened, because I don't know either. He swears he didn't put his name in, and I think I believe him. Either way, the other two headmasters – Karkaroff and Maxime – are positively livid. The Ministry goon, Barty Crouch (Percy's boss!), says there's nothing anyone can do, though. Ron is furious. Beyond furious. He's not only not speaking to Harry, but he's treating him like rubbish as well. It's pretty rough on Hermione – she's stuck going between the two of them – but I think overall, she'll stick by Harry's side.

I was out in the courtyard with Fred, Lee, Hermione, and Ginny when, out of nowhere, Hermione let out a huge gasp. "Look at those badges they're wearing! 'Potter stinks?' Honestly!" she huffed.

A nearby Slytherin turned around at that, and started giving us trouble. A few of his cronies joined in, and it quickly got heated. They were ripping on Harry, and we weren't standing for it. Just when it seemed like it was about to start getting physical, Hermione pulled us all away, saying they weren't worth it.

"Look at you, a bunch of cowards – running away. Just like I'm sure your Saint Potter will do as soon as the tournament starts."

Hermione spun around, body rigid with anger. "Don't you _dare_ say those things about Harry! You vile, loathsome..."

She didn't get to finish her sentence, though, because just then, he whipped out his wand and non-verbally sent a curse at her. At the last second, Fred jumped out in front of her and took the hit, crumpling to the ground.

It was like everything within me stopped working. I couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't move. "Freddy..." I said, in what can only be described as a moan. He wasn't moving. Lee bent down over him, and announced that he was still breathing. Ginny put a hand on my shoulder.

"Come on, George. We need to get him to the hospital wing. Can you walk?"

I nodded. Lee realized I wasn't going to be much help, so he hoisted Fred up over his shoulder and started walking, with Ginny following. Hermione came over to me and slipped her hand into mine, lending me some strength. I squeezed her hand, and she led me to the hospital wing.

-oOo-

Fred didn't wake for three days. I never left his side; I couldn't. I slept in a chair next to his bed, holding his hand, occasionally stroking his hair, and just waiting. Three times a day, Hermione would bring me food from the kitchens, though I honestly found I really wasn't hungry.

On the third day, he stirred and gripped my hand. "George?" he whispered.

"I'm here, Freddy," I replied, unable to contain my relieved smile. "How do you feel?"

"Sore," he answered, gingerly trying to sit up. "What happened?"

"A Slytherin thug sent a curse at Hermione, but you jumped in front of her to take it instead. She'll be so relieved to know you're awake; she feels incredibly guilty that it's you lying in that bed instead of her."

"That's stupid," he retorted. "What does she have to feel guilty for? I chose to take the hit for her. It's not like she made me."

I sighed. "I'm not the one you need to be convincing, Fred. I'm sure she'll come by later and you can tell her then. I'm so glad you're alright, though."

He gently patted my hand. "How long was I out for?"

"Three days."

"_Three days?_" he exclaimed. "No _wonder_ I'm so hungry!"

I just laughed and grinned at my brother. He'd be just fine.

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><p>Posted: 17 July 2011<br>Word Count: 2,480


	17. Chapter 17

__I was planning on waiting until I hit 100 reviews to post this - currently at 98! - but I got impatient. I wrote this a few days ago, and have been itching to post it. I hope you guys like this chapter...I think you've been waiting for this ;)__

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><p>So today is the day of the first task, and we're all a bit nervous for Harry. He has to battle a dragon! The upside of this task, though, was that we got to see Charlie – he's part of the crew that brought the dragons over from Romania.<p>

During the 30 minutes leading up to the task, Fred and I took bets from whatever students were interested – hey, we've gotta earn our money back somehow! - but as soon as the cannon was fired and Cedric emerged, we put our box away and stood by Hermione, Ron, Ginny and Lee to watch the task unfold.

Cedric, Krum, and Fleur did pretty well, but their successes only made us more nervous for Harry. After he got off to a bumbling, terrifying start, Hermione shouted down to him to bring him to his senses. "Your wand, Harry! Your wand!" He pointed his wand up and shouted a spell we couldn't make out, and then just waited. Well, he waited in the wrong spot, apparently, because his dragon noticed him and almost took him out. A collective gasp went out over the crowd, and I felt someone grab my hand. I looked down to find my hand linked with Hermione's, and felt something strange in my stomach. How had I never noticed how perfectly her hand fit in mine? Oh no, not this train of thought again. I can't go falling for my best friend! Something deep inside of me challenged that, though. Why exactly was it that I couldn't? There were no laws dictating this. It'd actually make perfect sense; who better to fall in love with than your best mate? No one knows you better, cares for you more, or would go to the ends of the earth for you like a best mate would.

Bollocks. I have feelings for Hermione! Well this is going to be awkward...

I was so distracted by my thoughts that I almost missed seeing Harry's Firebolt zooming into the arena, or him hopping onto it just in the nick of time to avoid a blast of fire. None of us were prepared for what happened next, though; the dragon broke free of its chain and flew off in pursuit of Harry. They soon disappeared from sight, so all we could do was wait.

Hermione was so nervous that she let go of my hand and fiercely hugged my side, turning her face toward my chest so she didn't have to look. Instinctively, I wrapped my arm around her and started stroking her hair, whispering soothingly to her that Harry would be alright. I tried so hard to ignore the amazing feeling of having this beautiful witch in my arms; I needed time to think all this through away from her and decide if it was worth risking our friendship to say anything. I realized I needed to talk to Fred.

All of a sudden, I spotted a speck in the distance growing larger. That can't be... "Harry!" I shouted, shaking Hermione and pointing towards the sky. He was zooming back towards the arena, with no dragon in sight. The crowd went absolutely _bonkers._

-oOo-

We held a victory party in the common room that night for Harry. The excited atmosphere was ruined, though, when Harry tried opening his egg to hear the clue; all that came out was a horrible screeching. Then it just got _more_ awkward when Ron made his appearance, and he and Harry attempted to reconcile their differences. I saw this as the perfect opportunity to nab Fred and drag him upstairs to talk. We settled in on my bed, drew the curtains, and threw up a silencing charm.

"So what's up, Georgie?" he asked.

I sighed, not knowing where to begin. I quickly realized I wasn't going to be able to say this while maintaining eye contact with my brother, so I took a moment to lay down and stretch out across the bed, staring at the ceiling.

"George?" he prodded.

I sucked in a huge breath, let it out loudly, and then spoke. "I'm in trouble, Freddy. I discovered earlier today that I have feelings for Hermione."

I didn't have to see his face to know he was grinning. "About damn time!" he shouted.

I shot up into a sitting position and looked down at him. "_What?_"

He laughed and sat up, facing me. "I was wondering when you'd figure that out."

I can only imagine the incredulous look on my face. "You mean, you knew?"

"I've known for a long time, mate; just been waiting for you to realize it too."

I frowned. Had it been that obvious? "So what do I do, Freddy?"

"What do you mean, what do you do? You bloody well _tell her_, that's what!"

"Fred! I can't do that! What if she doesn't feel the same way? I'm terrified of ruining our friendship."

"Fine, then. How about this – just observe her, and try to figure out if maybe she shares your feelings. And possibly even ask her to the ball?"

I thought for a minute, and then nodded my assent. "That might work. Thanks, Freddy. Oh! And does anyone else know?"

He shook his head and responded. "Nah, I think it's only me and Lee that have figured it out."

"Okay, good."

-oOo-

The next two weeks passed by rather quickly, and the number of days until the ball were ticking down ominously. I'd been trying to stealthily observe Hermione, see if I could tell what her feelings were, but she didn't seem to be acting any differently than normal.

We were sitting around with Gin and the Golden Trio in the common room, just goofing off, and Ron and Harry were discussing their issues with getting a date for the dance. Fred took pity on them, and tried to give them a little encouragement. "Better get a move on, gents, before all the good ones are taken!"

Ron looked over at him with a curious expression on his face. "Oh yeah? Who're you taking, then?"

Fred held up a finger, telling them to wait, and then shouted across the common room. "Oi! Angelina!"

"What, Fred?" she shot back.

"Wanna go to the ball with me?"

She looked momentarily surprised, but then grinned bashfully and nodded.

"See? Piece of cake," Fred boasted.

Ron suddenly turned to Hermione. "Hermione, you're a girl."

"Oh, well spotted," she bit back.

Ron continued, unfazed. "Well, you could go with one of us!"

"No, I can't," she replied.

"And why not? We're friends, aren't we?"

She huffed, and stood to gather her things. "I _can't_ because someone's already asked me," she started, "and I said YES!" My stomach dropped...

Ron blanched for a moment. "Who is it?"

Hermione just huffed again and walked up the stairs to her dorm. Fred inconspicuously patted my knee and gave me a knowing look.

Bollocks.

Ginny turned towards me. "Who're you taking, George?"

I shook my head. "I don't have a date yet, Gin. I have no idea who I'm going to ask..."

She gave me a knowing look coupled with a sad smile. "Well, I have a friend in Ravenclaw who won't get to go unless someone older asks her, I'm sure she'd be happy to go with you."

I looked at her curiously. "Oh yeah? Who's that?"

"Luna Lovegood," she replied.

"Isn't that the girl who lives in that crazy house near the Burrow?"

She nodded.

I thought for a moment, and then nodded back. "She seems nice enough, maybe I'll ask her. Thanks, Ginbug," I responded, with a warm smile.

-oOo-

Well, it's official – I'm taking a third-year to the Yule Ball. Me and Luna Lovegood; interesting.

I still have no idea who Hermione's going with – she won't tell anyone. Not even _Harry._ Meanwhile, my feelings for her have only gotten stronger, and I still have no idea how she feels about me.

But no time to focus on that right now – we're headed out to the grounds for a snowball fight! The teams are me, Fred, Lee, Angelina, and Luna vs. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Ginny, and there's a no-wands rule.

The first half hour of the battle was crazy, with snow flying every which direction, and no mercy being shown. All of a sudden, I noticed a rather large snowball zooming towards me, and it followed me as I turned. Someone – Hermione, it seems – was using their wand! I managed to eliminate the rogue snowball and shouted, "Hermione's cheating! Put away that wand!" She laughed, and sent another snowball at me. I decided I was going to take her down, so I charged at her. As soon as I got close enough to try dumping snow on her head, she reached over and threw some down my coat. Ooh, this means war! The next five minutes were spent with the two of us trying to shove snow into each others clothing, laughing like loons. Finally, she managed to get close enough to push a snowball down my trousers, but her close proximity was to my advantage. I grabbed her sides, tickling her, and we both fell down laughing. That is, until we both realized how close our faces were, as I had landed on top of her in the snow. We just lay there, looking in each others eyes for what felt like ages, until I finally just decided to gather up all my Gryffindor courage and go for it. With a passing comment of "bugger the consequences," I leaned down and kissed her.

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><p>Posted: 20 July 2011<br>Word Count: 1,645


	18. Chapter 18

_I came up with Fred's first line pretty much when I started this story, and it still makes me laugh 18 chapters later :D__  
><em>

_Here's a plate full of e-cookies for **Carebear114**, for being the 100th review!_

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><p>It only took a moment, but <em>she kissed me back!<em> I felt like I was soaring; this was probably the most amazing thing I'd ever felt. But of course, all good things must come to an end...

"Oi, you two! Make war, not love!" Fred shouted, grinning impishly. "These snowballs won't throw themselves!"

I smiled down at Hermione, who was giving me a bashful grin, before I pulled her up with me to stand. "I reckon we should probably talk about this, you think?" She just nodded in response. "Hey guys, we're gonna bail. Have fun!"

Fred paused mid-throw and grinned at us again. "_FINALLY!_" he shouted. "Good luck!"

I took Hermione by the hand, and we went to go sit on a bench in the courtyard. I took a deep breath, turned to face her, and began to speak. "Hermione, I don't know what that kiss meant to you, but I've realized over the past few weeks how much more to me you mean than just friendship. I really don't want to risk losing the relationship we already have, but I couldn't deal with keeping this from you any longer. I really, really like you." I finally took a chance and raised my eyes to meet hers, and all I could see was happiness shining forth from them.

"Oh George," she breathed, softly placing one of her hands on my face. "I'm so glad you feel that way. You have no idea how long I've been waiting to hear you speak those words."

Wait, what?

"I've had feelings for you for a long time," she continued, "I was just waiting – and hoping – for you to feel the same way."

I just looked at her and blinked, processing her words. "Wait, so you like me too?"

She laughed quietly. "Yes, you big lug, I like you a lot! And if you don't shut up and kiss me again, I'll be sorely disappointed."

Who am I to say no to that? I smiled softly, and kissed her with as much emotion as I could. She smiled against my lips, responding to the kiss, and then pulled back. "I suppose we should work all of this out, then."

"What do you mean?" I asked, still a little dazed from feeling her lips on mine.

"Like, are you going to be my boyfriend now? And what do we do about having dates to the ball?"

Bugger. The ball. I had almost forgotten about that. "Well, to answer your first question – yes, if you'll have me. And we can't exactly ditch our dates three days before the ball...I'd say we just explain the situation to them, and hope they're understanding enough to let us sneak off for a few dances with each other."

"That's perfect," she replied. "And I'm very much thrilled at the prospect of calling you my boyfriend. I've never had someone to call that before."

I smiled brightly at her. "I'm honoured to have earned that title, then. And if you don't mind me asking, since all this is happening – who's your date to the ball?"

She sighed. "I suppose I can tell you, as long as you promise not to tell anyone else." I nodded. "Viktor Krum."

My eyes got wide at this admission, and I fumbled with my words for a moment. "R-really? How'd you manage _that?_"

She shrugged. "He spends a lot of time in the library watching me study, so we ended up talking a bit and forming a friendship."

I nodded, obviously still processing this new information. "I had no idea you two even knew each other!"

"Yeah, we don't really advertise our friendship much. Guess everyone will find out at the ball, though."

"Yeah, and you'll have to incur the wrath of his jealous fangirls!"

She chuckled. "Maybe...but I would hope my big, strong boyfriend would be there to protect me."

I grinned. "Always."

-oOo-

We made our way into the Great Hall for dinner that night hand-in-hand. Lee looked up from his food and spotted our joined hands. "It's about time!" he shouted. Hermione blushed, but I just grinned like a fool.

Fred looked up after hearing Lee's exclamation, and let out a loud whoop. "Way to go, Georgie!"

This finally caught the attention of my younger siblings and Harry, the latter of whom looked at me appraisingly, as if he were planning something. Ron looked up with an expression of shock across his face, but Ginny just smiled knowingly. "So you finally told her you liked her, eh?" Ginny asked.

I looked up at her as we slid into our seats, slightly alarmed. "What do you mean, finally? You knew?"

"I'm quite observant when it comes to my brothers, George. I figured it out awhile ago."

"Am I the _only_ one who hadn't figured it out?" I asked, groaning. Hermione giggled, and Ron just glared at me.

"George, mate, can I have a word outside?" Harry asked, standing up.

"Um, sure," I replied, getting out of my seat. Hermione reached over and squeezed my hand as I went to walk away.

Once Harry and I had exited the Great Hall and were alone, he rounded on me with a stony expression. "George, I know you're a good bloke, and I trust you just fine, but Hermione's my sister. If I find out that you've so much as harmed one hair on her head, you'll find yourself on the business end of my wand. And that's not a threat; it's a promise."

I gave Harry the most serious expression I could, and did my best to reassure him. "I have no intention of ever hurting Hermione, Harry. And if I somehow mess up and unintentionally upset her, you can be sure that I'll have already punished myself more than enough by the time you get to me."

Harry just stood there, as if trying to judge the validity of my statement. He nodded, and patted me on the shoulder. "Take good care of my sister," he said, "now let's go finish our dinner."

-oOo-

The next day, after breakfast, I made my way out of the castle and across the grounds to the Durmstrang ship. I had to stand there for a few minutes, waiting for someone to come out, but finally got my chance. "Excuse me," I said, "would you mind telling Viktor Krum that I'd like to speak to him? You can tell him it's about Hermione."

He nodded, and made his way back to the ship. A few minutes later, Krum came off the ship towards me. "You vish to speak to me?"

"Yes. I'm George Weasley – Hermione's best friend, and as of yesterday, boyfriend. I understand that you're taking her to the ball. I'm not here to ask to take your place; I simply wanted to know if you wouldn't mind me having a few dances with her throughout the night."

He nodded at me before responding. "Ah, so _you_ are the Veasley. Herm-own-ninny speaks very highly of you. I am grateful that you aren't asking me to find a new date, and of course I vould not mind letting you steal her avay for a little vhile. You seem like a good man; I should hope ve could maybe be friends since we are both close to Herm-own-ninny."

I smiled at that, and reached out to shake his hand. "I hope so too. Thank you, Viktor, I appreciate your kindness and for being such a good friend to Hermione. Maybe you could join us at our table for lunch?"

"I vould like that. Haff a good morning, George Veasley." He bowed at me, and I nodded before we both turned and walked away. That was a lot easier than I was expecting; thank Merlin. Now to just talk to Luna...

-oOo-

It turns out I didn't have to talk to Luna, because Hermione got to her first. Great minds think alike and all that.

I joined her for lunch in the Great Hall, and Krum came and sat by us a few minutes later. "Hi, Viktor! I'm glad you could join us. I actually had something I wanted to ask you about the Yule Ball." Hermione said, greeting him.

"You vish to haff some dances vith Veasley, no?"

She stammered for a moment. "Well, yes, how did you know that?"

"You are not the only one to talk to me," he responded.

She looked over at me, and I shrugged and gave her a sheepish grin. She beamed back at me. "That was very thoughtful, George. And yes, I would appreciate getting to have a few dances with him, if you don't mind."

"Is no problem. Ve can take turns," he said, smiling.

"Sounds perfect. Thank you, Viktor." She grinned at the both of us, and he nodded back as we all tucked into our lunch.

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><p>Posted: 23 July 2011<br>Word Count: 1,537


	19. Chapter 19

I had plans to meet Luna outside the Ravenclaw common room, but I really wanted to see Hermione before she went off to meet Viktor, so I hung around the common room a little while longer. It was totally worth the wait – she rendered me absolutely speechless. My jaw dropped, my eyes were bugged out...I'm sure I looked pretty amusing. "H-Hermione," I stuttered. "You look amazing! Beyond amazing; absolutely breathtaking! You're a vision."

She was wearing a strapless, floor-length, flowing gown that didn't cling to her body, but still showed off her curves quite nicely. It was olive green in color,with hints of a gold shimmer throughout. Her hair – oh, her hair. She must have spent _ages _on it. It was mostly up in a sort of twist, the top sleeked back, and there were a few little curls hanging loose, framing her face. The color of the dress really brought out the contrast between her hair color and skin tone, it suited her quite well.

"Breathe, George," Fred whispered, leaning over to me. "And quit drooling."

I promptly shut my mouth, and took one of Hermione's hands in my own, bringing it up so I could brush a kiss across her knuckles. Dropping her hand, I summoned a rose, and charmed it gold to match her dress. As I handed it to her, she smiled, and reached up to weave it into her hair.

"Thank you, George," she started. "You look quite dashing yourself. I hate to have to leave you already, but I need to go meet Viktor."

"No, that's fine, go ahead, love. I'll see you in a little while."

She smiled, and leaned up to place a chaste kiss on my lips, then turned towards the portrait hole to leave. Right as she was about to exit, she turned around. "Georgie?"

My head snapped up. "Yes, love?"

"Don't forget to save me a dance," she responded, grinning. And with a swish of her dress, she left the common room to go meet her date.

"Freddy?" I said, turning towards my twin.

"Hmm?"

"I'm a lucky man."

"That you are, brother, that you are."

-oOo-

As soon as Angelina came downstairs to meet Fred, the three of us headed over to the Ravenclaw common room. We didn't have to wait long; Cho Chang walked out, and offered to go get Luna when she saw us. Not a minute later, she came back out with Luna in tow. Now, don't get me wrong – Luna's no Hermione – but she looked positively radiant in her own right. While Hermione has classic, comfortable beauty, Luna has a sort of willowy, ethereal beauty all her own. The combination of her lilac robes, long, flowing blond hair, and dreamy smile caused her to seem to be surrounded by a bit of a glow. "Wow, Luna, you look beautiful."

"Thank you, George," she responded, "You clean up well yourself. And you don't seem to be attracting any nargles, it's quite impressive."

"Thank you, I was hoping you'd notice that," I said, shooting a glance at Fred and trying not to smile. I held out my arm to her. "Shall we?"

She nodded, placing her arm over mine, and we all headed down to the Great Hall. The four of us joined Lee, Alicia, Neville and Ginny at a table, and before we knew it, they were introducing the champions.

Fleur showed up with Davies! Guess he wasn't too concerned about not getting a second date with Hermione after that first Hogsmeade weekend...And Cedric brought Cho? No wonder Harry seemed so bummed. Speaking of Harry, there he is with...Parvati? Weird...And there's my Hermione, looking extraordinary. I was almost tempted to be jealous of Krum for a moment, but then I remembered how kind and understanding he's been about the date situation, and stopped myself.

After the traditional opening of the first dance by the champions (poor Harry!), other couples started joining them on the dance floor, so I stood up and offered Luna my arm. "Would you care to dance?"

She smiled and agreed, and we headed out to the dance floor. Whatever I expected Luna's dancing style to be like, I did _not _expect it to be like _this_. She twirled and swirled to some other beat inside her head, while moving her arms and head around in some strange, fluid motion. Somehow – don't ask me how, I really don't know – I managed to keep up with her; thank Merlin. After getting the hang of it, though, it ended up being quite a bit of fun. I guess if I had to compare it to something, I'd have to go with a spacey version of Fred's dancing style. Hrmm...maybe that's how I figured it out so easily, and why I found myself enjoying it.

Anyway, after awhile, we made our way over to Fred and Angelina, and swapped partners for a song. I guess the girls weren't expecting us to swap out our partners for _each other_, though, because they looked a little dumbfounded when Fred and I linked hands and started to waltz. A bright flash caught our attention, and we discovered Colin Creevey – the ball's photographer – had captured our moment on film. Brilliant! I'll be sending that photo home to Mum.

By the time we stopped seeing spots from the flash, we noticed not only had Angie and Luna given up and started dancing together, but they were currently moving in on Ginny and Neville to swap again. At the end of the song, Fred left me to steal Angie back, and so I took up a dance with my baby sister. "Hey, Ginbug. Enjoying yourself?" She nodded, smiling. "I trust Neville's treating you well?"

"Oh yes," she replied, "he's been a perfect gentleman. We're having a brilliant time together. How about you and Luna, then?

I laughed, and twirled her around. "She's quite the interesting dancer, though I find myself enjoying her individuality."

Ginny chuckled. "Yeah, individuality, that's what it is...so anyway, why haven't you danced with Hermione yet?"

"I really want to, but I feel weird cutting in on her and Krum, even if he did say he was okay with it."

"Just do it!" she insisted. "I think if she looks over here at you one more time, her eyes might get stuck sideways. Go on then, the song's ending anyway."

"Will you make sure Luna has someone to dance with?"

She smiled. "No problem. I've seen her trying to inconspicuously eye Ron all night, I'll make that happen."

"Thanks, Gin, you're the best." I pulled her in for a hug, and turned to walk towards Krum and Hermione after kissing her on the cheek.

-oOo-

After a few fast dances with my girl, I looked over and spotted Krum seemingly having a great time dancing with Fleur, and all the guilt at stealing his date disappeared. The music shifted to a slower song, and I placed my hands on Hermione's waist, pulling her close.

"Mmm," she purred, "I've been waiting for this all night."

"Me too," I responded. "This might be my favorite part of the night so far. And now that I've got you in my arms, I don't plan on letting you go for the rest of the night. Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight? I'm the luckiest guy in the room."

Hermione blushed, but shook her head, burying her face in my chest. "Thank you, but I hardly believe I'm as beautiful as you're suggesting."

"Hermione," I said softly, bringing her chin up to look me in the eyes. "Have you even looked at yourself tonight? You're the most gorgeous bird in the whole place."

"Okay, George, whatever you say. Thank you, though. Have you enjoyed your evening so far?"

"Oh yes," I replied, smiling. "Luna is one hell of a dancer, we had a ball together. And I got a dance with Fred and Ginny, too! How about you?"

"Quite. Viktor is a great dance partner, we worked well together. And I'm quite amused to see how much he and Fleur are enjoying each other; Davies really got what was coming to him."

"Yeh, I suppose so."

We fell into a comfortable silence, just swaying back and forth together, and Hermione laid her head back down against my chest as I returned one of my hands to her waist. I slipped the other up to the back of her neck, and softly stroked her skin. This was the most comfortable I've ever remembered feeling, and I never wanted it to end.

Eventually, though, all good things must come to an end, and as the clock struck midnight, so did the Yule Ball. I pulled away from Hermione, and slipped my hand in hers to walk her back to the dorms. We walked together in a peaceful silence, until we were just down the corridor from the Fat Lady. Hermione suddenly stopped, and tugged my arm to stop me as well. She turned to me with slight hesitation in her voice as she said, "George?"

"Hmm?"

"This has been one of the best nights of my life. I never want this feeling to end, and I was thinking; maybe it doesn't have to."

I looked at her curiously. "What do you mean?"

She looked at me nervously. "Well, I was thinking...it could still feel just as magical if I fell asleep and woke up in your arms..."

I felt my face fall into a look of surprise and incredulity as I responded. "...You want to sleep in my bed with me tonight?"

She nodded timidly. "Yes, if you don't mind."

"Mind?" I exclaimed. "What in the world could ever make you think I'd _mind _getting to sleep beside you? I'd be thrilled to have you share my bed; I was just surprised you suggested it."

"Okay, good," she replied, smiling broadly. "I'm going to go upstairs to change into my pyjamas, I'll be in your dorm in a few minutes."

I nodded. It had been such a brilliant night, and it was about to get even better.

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><p><em>Note - they *didn't* have sex! They're just cuddling, that's all. You'll know when the big stuff happens.<em>

Posted: 1 August 2011  
>Word Count: 1,747<p> 


	20. Chapter 20

**THEY DID NOT HAVE SEX IN THE LAST CHAPTER.**

**They merely cuddled.**

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><p>Christmas morning! I <em>almost<em> leaped out of bed, until I realized there was a really lovely bird wrapped around me, sleeping peacefully. Breaking with tradition, I chose to stay in bed and snuggle with my girl instead of jumping on Fred. As luck would have it, though, Fred chose to make up for my lack of action by launching himself onto my bed. I had noticed him rearing back before the jump out of the corner of my eye, so I was prepared for the attack, but Hermione was not. She sat up with a piercing scream, and blindly took a swing at her attacker. Poor Fred's eye won't look the same for days...

My roommates all shot out of bed, immediately questioning why there was a screaming girl in our dorm. I had to explain everything to the three of them, and Lee was the only one who didn't give me trouble for it.

After a long bout of apologies and Hermione blushing profusely, I finally turned to them and yelled out, "Let's just open our presents already, yeah?" They quieted down, so I continued. "How about this – you and I go up to your dorm, Hermione, to bring your presents down here so you can open them with us. I'll collect the gifts while you go brush your teeth, because I can already tell how much you want to."

She grinned at me before planting a chaste kiss on my mouth. "Sounds perfect, thanks, George."

She and I made our way up to her dorm, surprising her roommates in the process, and I got all her gifts while she was at the sink, managing to sneak my extra present into her pile.

We got back down to my room to find that Fred and Lee had actually _waited_ for us to open their presents! I was dumbfounded. We sat down at the foot of my bed, and nodded at my best mates with a smile – and then all started tearing into our presents together. Fred and I swapped our Weasley sweaters, as usual, and I was amused to see that Mum made Hermione one to match mine...oh well, she'll just have to match Fred, now. *smirk*

"I think I'll have to steal mine back temporarily, Freddy, to take a picture with Hermione to send to Mum," I said, tearing into my next gift. He just nodded in response, going back to his own pile.

Overall, I got a pretty decent haul. Fudge from mum and dad (and the jumper), lots and lots of Ice Mice from all my siblings and Lee, Chocolate Frogs from Fred (we'd been exchanging these for as long as I can remember), and then I got to Hermione's gift. Turns out she was opening mine at the same time, so I said, "looks like we had the same idea then, yeah?" We had both gotten each other lovely Christmassy frames to put our picture from the Yule Ball in. She grinned and turned to me.

"Looks like it. It also looks like you've got one more that you missed," she said, opening her second gift from me. She laughed when she saw that it was a month's supply of Toothflossing Stringmints. "Thanks!"

I turned to my pile and discovered Hermione had been right – there was a small, Ravenclaw-coloured package I had missed. Label says it's from Luna; there's a little thank-you note for taking her to the ball. When I opened it, I found a bracelet made out of butterbeer corks; so perfectly Luna. I'd have to thank her at breakfast, it was probably the most unique gift I'd ever gotten.

We all three pulled on our Weasley sweaters and headed down to breakfast with Lee, meeting Harry, Ron, Ginny, Angelina and Alicia along the way. We ran into Colin when we got there, and he gave us a rather large stack of pictures he had taken of all of us at the ball last night. I think I might go down to the kitchens later and ask the house elves to help me bake some biscuits for him; that'd be a good trade, I think. Oh! "Oi, Lee!" I shouted.

"Hrmm?" he replied, turning to me.

"Can I get you to take a picture of me and my girl in our sweaters for my mum after breakfast, please?"

He just nodded, with a smile on his face, and tucked into his breakfast.

-oOo-

So it's New Year's Eve tonight, and I've got plans to take Hermione on our first official date – I'll kidnap her after lunch. In the meantime, this meal looks too good to pass up.

As soon as I finished eating, I looked down the table towards Hermione. "Hey, Mione, are you almost done?"

She nodded, and put down her silverware, pushing her plate away.

I got up and made my way over to her, and grabbed her hand. "C'mon, love, I'm taking you on a date. Let's go up to the tower so you can change into warmer clothes." I pulled her up with me, and we started making our way towards Gryffindor Tower.

"What should I wear?" she asked, curious.

"Something warm enough to be outside at midnight, and around muggles...and no, I won't reveal any more." I smirked, and motioned for her to go through the portrait hole before me.

Once she was ready, I took her hand and led her out onto the grounds. I found a nice, long stick, and we made our way over to the Whomping Willow. Prodding the knot, I led her under the now-still branches, and into the tunnel. When we reached the Shrieking Shack, I led her out the door and we headed towards Hogsmeade. As soon as the main road was in sight, I held out my wand and held Hermione back behind me.

BANG

Aah, my favorite magical mode of travel. "Welcome to the Knight Bus, Hermione!"

She stared in awe of the bus as I climbed on and whispered our destination in Stan's ear. He nodded, and I helped Hermione up the steps after slipping him the fare.

A long, bumpy (and cuddly!) ride later, and we had reached our destination. It was a simple little park I'd found. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a miniaturized kite. Checking to make sure no one was looking, I enlarged it back to its normal size.

"Ooh, we're going to fly a kite?" Hermione exclaimed. "I haven't done that since I was a little girl!" She looked positively overjoyed.

I nodded. "I _thought_ you might enjoy this."

We spent the next hour or so flying the kite together, and then headed for the playground. "Get on a swing, Mione, I'll push you." She grinned widely at me, and followed my instructions. We spent a good half hour in companionable silence (with a bit of interspersed laughter) as I pushed her on the swings.

We got bored of the swings after a little while, so I took her by the hand and led her over to a little hill. It was still warm enough outside, so we used our coats as pillows as we laid down on the grass, staring up at the clouds and just talking. I held her hand in mine as we lay there, softly rubbing the back of it with my thumb.

Eventually, it started to get dark, so I helped Hermione up and led her to a small cafe just outside the park. We had a nice dinner, and spent a good few hours discussing magical theory over some coffee. It was surprisingly interesting; who knew I could be engaged in such an intelligent conversation? Around 11PM, I paid the bill and led her back outside to our little hill. Helping her into her coat, we sat back down on the grass. "George, it's getting rather late...shouldn't we be heading back to the castle?" she asked.

I shook my head. "We'd miss the best part of the night! It'll start in, oh...30 minutes."

She looked at me quizzically, but just smiled and nodded her assent.

At 11:30, I wrapped my arm around her just as the fireworks started. She gasped, and turned to me with a huge grin on her face. "George! I _love _fireworks!" She looked so positively beautiful in that moment. The smile on her face, the way the fireworks lit up her eyes, the way the light washed across her features, the happiness I could feel pouring off of her; there was no way I could watch the show, I was too entranced by her.

"Beautiful," I breathed.

"I know, aren't they?" she replied, innocently.

"I wasn't talking about the fireworks, Hermione."

She looked at me and realized I'd been staring at her instead of the night sky. Blushing, she smiled shyly and leaned into me further.

A few minutes later, the other people in the park started counting down to midnight.

10...9...8...

"Happy new year, Hermione."

7...6...5...

"Happy new year, George."

4...3...2...1...

And I kissed her, right as we rang in the new year.

* * *

><p>Posted: 28 August 2011<br>Word Count: 1,545


	21. Chapter 21

_I'd like to dedicate this chapter to two beloved women. My grandmother, who I lost one year ago today (miss you, Shirl!), and Wizards-Pupil's grandmother, who is hopefully on the road to recovery :)_

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><p>School's been back in session for a few weeks now, and I just got out of my first detention of the new year. As I walked into the common room, I spotted Harry, Ron, and Ginny – but no Hermione. No Fred or Lee, either...<p>

"Hey guys," I called over to them, "have you seen any of my best mates?"

"I'm pretty sure Fred and Lee are hanging out in your dorm; dunno about Hermione, though," Ginny replied.

"Thanks, Gin," I said, and then nodded at the other two before making my way up the stairs to my dorm. Upon entering the room, I happened upon a scene I was_not_ expecting; Lee was sitting on the edge of his bed, facing Fred's, and talking to my brother – and Hermione, whose lap Fred's head was pillowed on. They were laughing hysterically, and it took a minute for them to notice my arrival.

"Georgie!" Lee called, sounding slightly breathless from laughing. "Where've you been? You just missed Hermione's great joke!"

Hermione called out, "George!" just as I started to reply.

"Oh I did, did I? I had detention with Flitwick. Care to share the joke again?"

Fred sat up to allow Hermione to turn and face me. "Not until I get a hug hello," she replied with a cheeky grin.

"I think that can be arranged..." I said, making my way over to her. As I hugged her, Fred and Lee both let out a groan and rolled their eyes. "So, how about that joke, then?"

Hermione smiled, and started to tell her joke again. "So a hag, a goblin, and Minister Fudge walk into a bar..."

-oOo-

A few hours later, Fred and Lee had gone to sleep, and I was cuddled up with my girl on my bed with the curtains drawn, just catching up. "So it seems like you had a fun evening with Fred and Lee, then," I said, eying her casually to see her reaction.

"I really did!" she replied, smiling. "I'm finding that I really enjoy their company; they're great guys."

I grinned really widely, showing my obvious happiness at hearing that my girlfriend was getting on so well with my best mates. "I'm glad. I've been eagerly awaiting the day that you found you could happily hang with them without me there."

She smiled and leaned over to kiss me. "You should know by now that I'm likely to trust anyone that you do, because I trust you and your judgment; so it only makes sense that I'd find myself spending time with Fred and Lee."

I nodded. "And on that note, speaking of you trusting me...I have a proposition for you."

"Do you, now?" she asked, curiously.

"I'd like to take you out for a fly tomorrow after we get back from Hogsmeade. I'd really like for you to experience flying like I do at least once, so I can share my passion with you. I promise to stay lower to the ground than I normally would, and not pull any tricks or stunts. What do you say?" I finished off my request with my best puppy dog eyes.

Hermione sighed and thought it through. Finally, she nodded. "Oh, alright. But _no_ stunts! And we land immediately if I feel too scared. Deal?"

I grinned widely and nodded. "Deal."

-oOo-

It was a quiet, uneventful day in Hogsmeade...you know, aside from the three different blokes that tried to hit on my girlfriend. THREE! Let's see...there was the Bulgarian, Justin Finch-Fletchley, and some fifth-year Slytherin. Clearly, they were shot down by the ever-feisty Hermione, but it was still annoying to have to deal with.

While we were in Hogsmeade, Lee managed to procure some Firewhiskey for us. He just came of age yesterday, and we're planning on having a party in the common room for him tonight; after I take the lovely miss Granger for a ride on my Cleansweep, that is.

Speaking of broom rides, looks like Hermione's ready to go! "All set, love?"

"As ready as I'll ever be, I suppose," she replied, a look of apprehension on her face.

"Oh, don't worry your pretty little head one bit, Hermione. I won't let anything happen to you; you know that," I reassured her.

She nodded slowly. "I know, I know."

"So what are we waiting for? Let's go!" I exclaimed, grabbing her hand and pulling her towards the portrait hole. She just laughed and followed me out. I led her out to the quidditch pitch and mounted my broom, seated a little further back than I normally would. "Climb on in front of me, love," I instructed as I patted the handle. She visibly gulped, but still climbed on – a testament to her trust in me. I showed her where to grip the handle, and wrapped my arms around hers to reach the handle myself to steer. "Ready?" She just nodded, stiffening a bit. I pulled up on the handle slightly, and we made a gradual ascent into the air. It was taking all my patience and willpower to go this slowly for her, but I knew I had to if I ever wanted her to trust me again.

Once we were high enough up, I started steering us back towards the castle. "Open your eyes, Hermione, you need to see this."

"How did you know my eyes were closed? I'm in front of you," she asked.

"I'd like to think that I know you pretty well, yeah? Not exactly a shot in the dark, I'd say. Now please, open them. You won't regret it."

I could tell she had given in and opened her eyes when I heard a soft gasp. "George, it's absolutely beautiful from up here! Why didn't you tell me how lovely the view is from the air?"

"No offense, but you never actually would have listened had I tried. One mention of flying and you stick your nose in a book, usually."

She put her hands on top of mine and gave them a light squeeze. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize that I did that; must just be a reflex. I _may_ be a Gryffindor, but I'm still afraid of heights, so I guess I just tend to steer clear of discussions about flying. I really _am_ enjoying this right now, though."

"What made you change your mind and agree to come up here with me?"

"You do so much for me, and seemed to really want this, so I figured it couldn't hurt to try it at least once. Besides; I knew we'd be on the same broom, and you'd never let anything happen to me. Well, that and I enjoy having your arms wrapped around me..."

Grinning like a nutter, I slowed us down to a hover and took my hands off the handle. Wrapping them around her waist, I hugged her from behind and planted a soft kiss on the side of her neck. "I think that's the sweetest thing you've ever said, Hermione, and it took every ounce of my masculinity to even _admit_ something was sweet. You're the best, you know that? I'm the luckiest guy in the world."

She leaned her head back onto my shoulder and snuggled her face up into the crook of my neck. "Mmm, no, I'm the lucky one."

-oOo-

After a bit more flying, I landed us on the astronomy tower; Hermione wanted to cuddle somewhere private. We just lay on the stone floor together, watching the clouds pass by and trying to name their shapes. Eventually, she looked at her watch and sat up quickly. "Merlin! Dinner's about to start!" She stood up and extended a hand to me, helping me up as well. We started heading towards the stairs when she put out a hand to stop me. "George," she started, "thank you for an absolutely lovely day." She smiled widely at me, and reached up to kiss me on the cheek.

"My pleasure, Hermione." I shrunk my broom and put it in my pocket, and then we headed down the stairs to the Great Hall.

As we walked in, I spotted Lee and Fred sitting together, and stopped short. Bollocks! I forgot to help them set up for the party! I quickly made my way over to the table and started apologizing profusely. Lee cut me off, though, with a "don't worry about it, mate. We knew you were with Hermione. It's all taken care of." I sat down, thanking them in the process.

"No problem, bro," Fred replied. "Just hurry up and start eating. The sooner we're done, the sooner we can start partying!"

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><p>Posted: 27 September 2011<br>Word Count: 1490


	22. Chapter 22

_Here's a necessary warning for those of you that may be a bit young and/or conservative - **this chapter is graphic**. No, there's no sex, but sex isn't necessarily required for something to be graphic. If that thought makes you uncomfortable, you won't be missing much in terms of the actual plot. This is essentially, for all intents and purposes, a filler chapter; so you won't be any less informed if you choose to wait for the next chapter to continue reading. And I won't be offended if you make that decision._

__I totally stepped out of my comfort zone writing this chapter - I've never written anything more than a simple kiss, really. So I'm a bit self-conscious about this one...please review and let me know what you thought, I hope I did a good job!__

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><p>As soon as we got back to Gryffindor tower, I staked out the corner with the big, squashy chairs, and settled myself into one of them. Shortly after that, Fred and Hermione came over to claim the other two. Lee came downstairs from our dorm, and stood up on a table to get everyone's attention.<p>

"FELLOW GRYFFINDORS! Tonight, we celebrate my entrance into adulthood with lots of mischief – some legal, and some not-so-legal! Enjoy yourselves, and make sure to cause plenty of trouble!"

Stepping down off the table amidst cheers, he made his way over to our corner. I realized there wasn't an open chair, so I got up to give him mine and sat on the arm of Hermione's. Before sitting down, he passed a decent-sized bottle of Firewhiskey to each of the three of us, with the instructions to "not drink it all in one go." We four leaned forward towards each other, as Fred announced, "To Lee!" We all echoed his sentiment, and clinked our bottles together. After taking my first swig, I looked down at Hermione and wrapped my arm around her shoulder, noticing she was fidgeting with her bottle and hadn't drank any yet.

"Go ahead and try it, love, it won't bite!" I said, rubbing her shoulder. She looked up at me hesitantly, then pasted an expression of steely resolve on her face.

"Oh, what the hell," she muttered, and knocked back a gulp, only sputtering a little. I was actually pretty impressed, for it being her first time drinking Firewhiskey. I gave a small chuckle, and kissed her on the head. Lee and Fred drew me into their discussion on our latest product idea, and Hermione even contributed her thoughts to it here and there.

After about an hour or so, I was about a quarter of the way through my bottle, so I was feeling pretty good. Hermione put her hand on my thigh, a little higher than she normally would, surprising me. I looked down and noticed she was almost as far into her bottle as I was into mine.

"Georgie," she called up to me.

"Yes, love?" I replied.

"Stand up a second." As I stood, she stood with me, and then pushed me down into her chair and settled herself on my lap. I was surprised by her boldness, but who am I to complain? Fred and Lee drew me back into their conversation, and I followed along with their banter for a few minutes until Hermione distracted me by playing with the hair on the back of my neck. Merlin, does that feel good. I wrapped one arm around her waist and rested the other on her leg, slowly rubbing back and forth on her thigh from her knee to the hem of her skirt.

The feel of her soft skin beneath my hand, and her small hand on the back of my neck, was making my mind wander to places I'd rather not share...I got lost in my thoughts for awhile, until Hermione shifted on my lap, making me suddenly _quite _aware of just how these daydreams were affecting me. I'm just glad she was sitting there so no one else could notice my...problem...

All of a sudden, she turned to face me, and kissed me softly. I smiled, and kissed her back. Placing her hands on either side of my face, she leaned into my chest and deepened the kiss. I ran my hands up her sides, one stopping on her upper back and softly stroking her clothed skin, and the other slipping up into her hair. She responded eagerly to this, running her tongue across my lips and slipping it inside my mouth to tangle with my own when I granted her access. After a few more minutes of snogging, when I thought things couldn't get any better, she surprised me again by readjusting herself to straddle my lap. I was shocked by her boldness and her seemingly uncaring attitude towards snogging so fiercely in a crowded room, but again – who am I to complain?

"Godric, Hermione," I whispered, in a breathy tone that surprised me. She was placing small kisses along my jaw. All I could think to do was draw her lips back to mine. My hands slid down her body onto her thighs as she dropped one hand onto my chest and clenched and unclenched her fingers, softly dragging her nails across my skin. I kept running my hands up and down her thighs, loving the feel of her soft, smooth skin.

On a whim, I tested my luck and slipped the tips of my fingers under the hem of her skirt. I was only halfway up her thighs, but it was still a ballsy move. I was rewarded for my actions, though, when she hummed happily against my lips and slipped one hand back into my hair. Feeling emboldened, I trailed my hands further up her thighs until they were completely covered by her skirt, and began stroking the soft skin of her legs. I moved my lips to the base of her throat, and began kissing my way up her neck to the skin behind her ear. I was rewarded with a soft purr in my ear.

"Mmm, George."

Without thinking, I captured her lips again, and simultaneously slid my hands around her hips to rest on her bum, only the thin fabric of her knickers separating me from her skin. Using my hand placement as leverage, I pulled her body closer to mine, inadvertently causing her core to rub against my arousal. She gasped as an audible groan slipped from my mouth, and I attacked her lips with renewed vigor.

"Oi, you two!" I heard Fred call from close by.

I pulled away from Hermione's face and turned towards my brother, annoyed with the interruption. "What?" I responded, sounding more frustrated than I had intended.

Fred chuckled softly. "Maybe you two should get a room; you're putting on quite a show for the rest of us."

Hermione went wide-eyed, as if just now realizing we were surrounded by people, and buried her face in my chest with a massive blush. I looked around and saw a few people staring in our direction, and had the decency to look slightly ashamed. "Yeah, alright," I replied. "Hermione? Wanna go upstairs?" She lifted her head up to look at me and nodded shyly, biting her lip. Gods, she's so sexy when she does that. "Alright," I stated, helping Hermione off the chair and then standing up myself. "Happy birthday, Lee. G'night, mates."

They both nodded at us with knowing grins on their faces, and I took Hermione's hand and led her up the stairs to my dorm.

-oOo-

When we got upstairs, I led her over to my bed, drawing the curtains closed and putting up a silencing spell. Hermione settled in on the bed, and looked at me with an apprehensive expression on her face. "George...I'm not sure -"

"Hermione," I interrupted, "please know that I'm not expecting anything from you; just being able to kiss you and hold you is more than enough for me. That being said, we can go as fast or as slow as you want. You're calling the shots here."

She smiled warmly at me as the anxiety melted off of her features. She leaned towards me and gently pushed me onto my back, moving to hover over me. "That's exactly what I wanted to hear," she whispered, her voice sounding huskier than I'd ever heard it. She leaned down and captured my lips in a fierce kiss. I lifted my hands up to run up and down her back, and then slid them down over her bum again, to rest on the tops of the back of her thighs. She ran her hands across my chest a few times before moving them down to my waist, and slipped her small fingers under my shirt. Her hands on my bare stomach and chest felt incredible. "George," she said between kisses, "I don't think I'd like to go much further tonight." I nodded, and she continued. "I _would_, however, like to pick up where we left off, and try that last bit out again."

I looked at her, my eyes a little hazy with lust, and tried to figure out what she was referring to. "What part, love?"

She gave me a cheeky, sultry grin, and ground her hips against mine. "Does that answer your question?"

I gulped and nodded. "Y-yes," I stuttered, trying to suppress a groan. I'd never gone this far with anyone before and neither, I knew, had she; this was headed into uncharted territory. But I couldn't be happier with my choice of partners to explore it with, to be honest, and I let her know that. "I'm so glad I have you, love. You're an amazing, sexy witch, and I get to keep you all to myself."

She beamed at me before responding. "Yes, all yours. But if you don't stop talking and have your wicked way with me, I might change my mind on the matter. Kiss me already, will you?"

I growled, then replied, "It's so ridiculously hot when you're aggressive like this. As you wish, love..."

I leaned up and captured her lips again, pulling her head down closer to the pillows with me. Her hands slid back up under my shirt, and the next thing I knew, she had the whole thing unbuttoned and was trying to slip it off of me. Of course, being the gentleman that I am, I helped her; this was going even better than I could have hoped.

With my upper body exposed, she took it upon herself to kiss her way up my torso, from my waist back to my mouth. I had my hands on her upper thighs under her skirt again, and was tracing every bit of skin I could find on her upper legs and arse. Feeling brave, I reached behind her and put my hands on the zipper of her skirt. I paused, waiting to see how she'd respond to that. To my extreme pleasure, she brought her hands back on top of mine and guided the zipper down. I helped her out of her skirt, leaving her in just her shirt and knickers.

Flipping us over so she was lying underneath me, I moved my hands to her waist and stroked the soft skin of her stomach and just above the top of her knickers. I kissed my way around her midriff, dipping my tongue into her bellybutton and making her giggle. She grabbed my face and pulled it back up to hers, kissing me deeply, and then rubbed herself against me.

"Merlin, Hermione, you're going to be the death of me," I groaned. She just responded by rubbing herself against me again, while tracing her bare toes up and down my calf, pushing the leg of my trousers up in the process. I dropped my head down to kiss and nibble at her collar and neck, and she hooked her heel around my calf, sliding her hands down to rest on the spot where my hips meet my arse. She used this new grip to grind herself against me repeatedly, getting into a rhythm and letting out little mewls at the attention I was laving upon her neck.

I rolled my hips to get a different angle, and suckled lightly on her earlobe, earning me a loud gasp. "George," she breathed, "gods." I responded by rubbing my thumbs along her stomach and ribs, and returning my mouth to hers. I slipped my tongue back into her mouth and traced everywhere I could reach; I could never get tired of the taste and feel of kissing her, it's incredible.

I started feeling a familiar tugging and tingle in my stomach as her most sensitive parts rhythmically rubbed against mine, and I could see a flush staining her cheeks and a concentrated expression across her features. I moved one of my hands to her bum to help us get a better angle, and brought the other up to stroke her face.

"Hermione," I whispered, breathing hard.

"Mmmmm," she whimpered in response. She moved her hands up to my chest and started running them across it, then up my shoulders and neck and into my hair. One of her hands moved back down to grip my arse, holding me closer to herself as our rhythm picked up speed.

I could feel my stomach tightening and used my free hand to start touching and kissing her everywhere I could reach in a slight frenzy, wanting to make sure she got out of it what I knew was quickly approaching for me. Her head fell to my shoulder as she cupped my arse tighter, her breathing getting shallower and more erratic. I bit lightly down on the underside of her jaw, softly moving my way up towards her ear. Tugging on her earlobe, I whispered to her. "Come on, Hermione, let it happen."

This, apparently, was her undoing as she let out a shuddering moan and her body shook beneath mine. Seeing her lose herself in her pleasure pushed me over the edge, and my hips jerked into hers as I felt the coil inside of me snap and saw fireworks. Our erratic movements slowed down as we came down from our high, and once I could breathe again, I put two fingers under her jaw to raise it to meet my mouth, and kissed her sweetly.

"Godric's ghost," she breathed out, once she could speak again. "I never knew it could feel that good."

"Me either," I responded, stroking her hair softly, "but I'm so glad it was you that I could discover that with. It was amazing; _you're_ amazing, Hermione. I hope it's always you that I get to experience this with."

"Oh George," she sighed, "what did I do to deserve you?"

"All you had to do was be yourself, love. I'm the one who had to work to deserve someone like you."

She grinned widely at me, and snuggled into my embrace. "You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, George Weasley," she said softly as sleep started to overtake her.

"I feel the same way, love," I responded, and kissed her on the head as I slid down under the comforter with her wrapped in my arms. "Goodnight, my Hermione."

She leaned up to press a kiss to my jaw, then snuggled back down. "Goodnight, George."

-oOo-

When I woke up the next morning, it was to find my girlfriend's pants-less leg wrapped around my waist, and her soft, small hand tracing shapes on my bare chest. "Wow, what a way to wake up. I could get used to this; wanna sleep here every night, love?"

Hermione laughed lightly, clearly still half-asleep. "If only...I sleep so much better when I'm with you."

I smiled softly at her, and then the realization of what happened last night struck me. "Hermione...about last night..."

"Hrmm?" she responded, leaning her elbows up on my chest to look me in the eyes from above.

"Any regrets?"

She shook her head before responding. "How could I ever regret anything with you, George?"

I smiled, and leaned forward to kiss her on the nose. "Just checking; remember, we _were_ slightly intoxicated."

"I wasn't drunk. Pretty tipsy, maybe, but still in control of my mental faculties. I was aware of what I was doing," she replied.

"Okay, good; I wouldn't want to do anything that you'd regret later on. That, and I was kind of hoping that wouldn't be just a one-time thing." I grinned sheepishly at that admission.

Hermione blushed at my words, but leaned towards me to look me in the eye. "George. After how amazing last night was, how could you think I'd want to avoid repeating it?"

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><p><em>NO, THEY STILL DIDN'T HAVE SEX.<em>

Posted: 28 September 2011  
>Word Count: 2,717<p> 


	23. Chapter 23

__Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for all the amazing positive feedback for the last chapter! I got a great response - 15 reviews - and many of them caused me to feel a lot more comfortable about what I had written. You guys are awesome, and I'm just glad you're enjoying my story :)__

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><p>After Hermione slipped out of my dorm to go get ready for the day, Fred and Lee immediately <em>pounced <em>on my bed.

"Did you shag her?"

"Was it good?"

"What was it like?"

"Is she gonna let you shag her again?"

"TELL ME EVERYTHING!"

I laughed, looking back and forth between Fred and Lee as the questions flew out of their mouths. "Whoa now, gents! _Gents! _Slow down. I'll answer all your questions, within reason. Now, one question at a time – go."

"Did you actually shag?" Fred asked, bouncing in his seat.

I shook my head. "No, of course not! She's _fifteen!"_

"Then what'd yeh do?" Lee asked curiously.

I sighed. "Okay. Now, what I'm about to tell you doesn't leave this bed, right?" They both nodded, and I closed the curtains and put up a silencing spell. I began recounting the night from where we left them, leaving out the more personal bits.

"So what'd it feel like?" Lee was on the edge of his seat.

"Well...let's just say that it's a thousand times better than anything you can get from Rosy Palm and her five friends, and we'll leave it at that."

Fred and Lee looked at me incredulously, then burst out laughing.

"Rosy Palm! Hahaha, oh my Godric!"

"I can't believe you just went there!"

I just grinned at them, enjoying seeing my mates so happy.

"So what happens next?" Fred wondered.

"That's up to her; as the muggles say, the ball's in her cord...or something like that. Anyway, it stays the same, I suppose, until she's ready to try something new. I won't pressure her for anything; hell, I'm not even sure _I'm_ ready for everything yet, to be honest! I'm happy with where we are for now."

Fred wiped away a fake tear as he sniffed dramatically. "Oh, Lee, our little Georgie's growing up!"

"I remember when he wasn't even interested in girls yet. Where'd the time go, Freddy?"

They both sighed dramatically, with the backs of their hands up to their foreheads.

I chuckled."Nothing's ever _really_ gonna change, is it?"

We all three looked at each other. "Nahhhhhhh."

-oOo-

So it's Valentine's Day, and I'm spending it with my girl...in the library. We got to have a nice picnic lunch together, just the two of us, but now we have more important things to focus on; namely, helping Harry research to prepare for the 2nd task. He has to be able to survive underwater for an hour, and we have no idea how that's possible.

THUNK

I looked over at the source of the sound and saw that Ron had fallen asleep on the table, with a few chocolate frog wrappers sticking out from under his book.

"I agree with Ron," Fred said, putting his book in the reject pile. "I think it's time for a snack."

"Blimey!" Harry yelped, looking at the clock on the library wall. "It's dinnertime already? Oh, I can't keep you guys from eating dinner, let's go take a break."

We headed down to the Great Hall, and ended up sitting by Neville. As we discussed our research over shepherd's pie, Neville spoke up. "Harry, I don't mean to eavesdrop or interrupt, but I heard something about needing to breathe underwater?" Harry nodded, so he continued. "Have you thought about using gillyweed yet?"

"Does that allow you to breathe underwater?" Harry asked, with a hopeful look on his face.

Neville nodded, smiling, and replied. "Yeah. If you come with me after dinner, I can go about showing you how to order some through owl post."

Harry clapped him on the back, beaming. "Nev, you're amazing; I don't know how to thank you for this!"

"Just survive this next task, yeah?" Neville said sheepishly.

I looked over at Hermione. "You know what this means, right?"

She tilted her head at me, confused. "What?"

"Harry doesn't need us for research anymore; we've got the rest of the night free! And since it's still Valentine's Day, I say that we celebrate by having dessert, just the two of us, in the kitchens tonight," I answered, whispering the second half in her ear.

She nodded, grinning. As soon as we had both finished dinner, we took a quiet, uninterrupted walk around the Black Lake, and then headed back inside to the kitchens once we knew the rest of the school would have finished eating. We had a nice, quiet, candle-lit dessert.

We finished the night with some cuddling in my bed while listening to Hermione's Pod-Eye thingy – it plays muggle music, somehow – she wanted to introduce me to some of her favorite songs. They all actually turned out to be pretty great. I leaned in to ask her a question about the song that was playing at one point, only to discover that she'd fallen asleep. I fiddled with the Pod-Eye until it finally turned off, and carefully placed it and the – ear plugs? – on my side table. I gently rolled Hermione onto her side, tucked the covers around us, and wrapped my arms around her, spooning her to help me fall asleep more easily.

-oOo-

So today's the second task, and I haven't seen Hermione since dinner last night. I was waiting in the common room so we could walk down to the lake together, but it's cutting it close now, so I suppose I'll just go.

"George! You leaving for the task now?" Fred called, walking over to me.

"Yeah," I replied. "I _was_ waiting for Hermione, but no one's even seen her since last night."

"Eh, I'm sure you'll see her down there," he reassured me. "She wouldn't miss seeing Harry compete!"

I sighed. "Yeah, I suppose you're right. Let's go, then"

We headed down to the Black Lake together, collecting bets again and trying to keep an eye out for Hermione, Ron and Ginny. We found the latter two, and joined them in the stands.

A few minutes later, the task started, and the four champions dove into the lake. We didn't have to wait more than 45 minutes for Krum to get back, pulling along what looks to be his brother. But that means...

"Merlin's beard," I groaned. "You don't think Hermione's in there, do you?"

Ginny looked momentarily surprised, but quickly gathered her wits and responded. "It would make sense. I mean, who else would they have picked for him? We're all up here, and he's practically got no relatives..."

I swallowed thickly, and Fred put his hand on my shoulder. Ginny took that moment to slip her hand into mine; I have the greatest siblings.

A tense, torturous fifteen minutes later, a little blonde girl pops her head out of the water, followed by... "HERMIONE!" I yelled, releasing my grip on my sister and bolting down to the judges' tower. I reached down to help pull her out of the water, and then bundled her up in my arms as soon as she had a blanket wrapped around her small frame.

"George, I'm fine, really," she tried convincing me, as I looked her up and down, trying to assess any injuries.

"But you were down there for so long! What if he hadn't made it to you in time?"

"George," she said calmly and soothingly, "relax. Dumbledore had everything under control. He wouldn't have put us in any real danger."

"I suppose," I replied sheepishly, realizing I may have made a bigger deal out of this than I should have. "Regardless, come on; let's get you up to the castle to warm up and dry off."

She fought against my hold and then paused, listening to the judges announce the results. "SECOND PLACE! HE GOT SECOND PLACE!" she yelled happily, a huge grin lifting her lips. She jumped up and down a few times, and then threw herself into my arms, hugging me fiercely. "Ok, _now_ we can go back to the castle."

* * *

><p>Posted: 5 October 2011<br>Word Count: 1,372


	24. Chapter 24

__Credit for Gabbing Gum and Flirting Fudge goes to Wizards-Pupil. Ever-Colour-Changing Flowers are my own creation.__

* * *

><p>"George! George!" Fred yelled as he ran into our dorm. I looked up from my arithmancy book to see him bouncing up and down excitedly.<p>

"What's happened, Freddy? Is everyone alright?"

"Of course, of course," he quickly replied, waving off the idea. "Angie's agreed to date me!"

"FINALLY!" Hermione and I exclaimed together, then looked at each other and laughed.

"That's fantastic, brother! When are you going to take her out, next Hogsmeade weekend?"

"Mhmm," he replied, nodding. "Okay, gonna go back to Angie now, just needed to tell you."

I chuckled. "Okay Fred, have fun."

He sped back out of the dorm and Hermione burst out in a fit of adorable giggles. "I don't think I've ever seen him that excited; it was too cute!"

I smiled at her before responding. "Cute is probably not the word he was aiming for, but I suppose it'll do." I ruffled her hair, going back to my book, and she snuggled back into my side with her own.

-oOo-

It's getting frighteningly close to April 1st, and Fred and I have been working twice as hard to prepare the pranks for our birthday. I mean, you only come of age once, right? Gotta do it big!

We'd been inventing up a storm, but not pranking as often because of it, so it'd been awhile since I'd actually looked _through_ our WWW book rather than _at_ it to write in a new invention. I decided to take a break for a few minutes to look over all our work thus far, and was stunned when I opened to the table of contents; the list was huge! Self-Propelling Custard Pies, Ever-Colour-Changing Flowers, Bruise Removal Paste, Decoy Detonators, Canary Creams, Ton-Tongue Toffees, Shimmering Silver Salt Drops, Gabbing Gum, and Flirting Fudge. Had we really invented _that_ many things already? "Oi, Freddy! C'mere!"

"What's up?"

"Look at this list. Have we really invented all these?"

Fred grinned. "That we have, brother."

"That's bloody brilliant," I replied. I got back to my inventing with a new-found determination after realizing the extent of our progress. "These people won't know what hit them."

-oOo-

"...but there were only _three_ koalas!" I insisted.

"George," the fourth koala said, before leaning down and kissing me. I couldn't pull away, though; it felt too much like a person's lips...someone familiar's...

"HERMIONE!" I exclaimed, waking up and opening my eyes, and then sitting up in bed.

"Hey, Georgie," she replied.

"What are you doing here?"

"Giving you part of your birthday present." She gave me a mischievous grin and leaned in to kiss me again.

"Well, what is it?" I asked.

She gave me an innocent look, and responded by giving me another quick kiss. "You'll see in a few minutes, be patient. In the meantime, I'd really like to snog you senseless."

That was all I needed to compel me to reach over and draw her to me, kissing her as I lay us down. A few minutes of heated snogging later, she flipped us over so she was on top and sat up, straddling my waist. She just sat there, chest heaving, her heavy breathing nearly matching mine, and stared into my eyes. I opened my mouth to ask why she stopped, but she put a finger to my lips, hushing me before I could speak. She looked at me for another few seconds, and then I saw a look of determination in her eyes.

"Happy birthday, George," she said, before reaching down to her waist and grasping the hem of her nightshirt. My eyes went wide as she pulled her shirt off, and I discovered that she wasn't wearing a bra.

Happy birthday, indeed.

-oOo-

So it's just about dinnertime, and we've pranked nearly everyone we had planned on – we turned Ron's teeth blue and his face green, we turned Harry's hair into pink pigtails, Lee grew two extra arms, Alicia couldn't speak without singing, Ginny kept breaking out into uncontrollable fits of giggles, Neville started waltzing with his toad at lunch, and everyone on the Hogwarts staff has been shimmering silver all day. As you can see, we decided to only prank our friends this year, as a prank on the whole school. They were on edge all day, waiting for something to happen to them, but it never did.

We only had two people left to prank, and that would be taking place at dinner. So we headed to the Great Hall, keeping an eye out for our last two targets. We spotted Krum sitting at the Slytherin table talking to Blaise Zabini. As discreetly as possible, Fred whipped out his wand and aimed it at our Bulgarian friend. The next thing we knew, there was a flamingo standing where Viktor had been sitting, and we burst out laughing. The flamingo made its way over to us and nipped us affectionately, as if to say, "nice one." Five seconds later, it transformed back into Krum, who immediately doubled over laughing.

"That vas very clever, Veasleys. You must teach me spell later. Happy birthday."

"Thanks, Viktor," I replied, smiling. I turned to Fred and we high-fived. "One left, Freddy. You ready for the grand finale?"

He nodded. "She just came in, go for it."

I took aim, and shot a succession of quick spells at Luna. She immediately flipped upside down in mid-air and flew to the ceiling. With her feet sticking, she started walking along the ceiling, laughing; except her laughs sounded like a sheep bleating, and every step she took rained confetti. She looked down at me and Fred and grinned, giving us a thumbs-up. "This is positively marvelous!" she called, and we grinned like nutters back at her. A successful 17th birthday, I'd say.

-oOo-

After dinner, we made our way upstairs to Gryffindor Tower. Hermione bolted past us, heading up to her dorm, and came running back down the stairs with two lumpy packages in her arms, calling to her dorm-mate. "Fay! _Fay!_ HEY DUNBAR! I took them from your trunk; thanks for storing them."

"No problem," the tall, lanky brunette called back.

Hermione came over to the couch we were sitting on and wedged herself between us. "Happy 17th, boys," she said, giving us each a lumpy package and a kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks, Hermione," Fred replied.

"Yeah, thanks love, but didn't you already give me my present this morning?"

Fred looked up at me with a questioning expression, and I tried to communicate with my eyes that I'd tell him later.

"I said that was _part_ of your present, silly. Of course I'd give you an _actual_ gift!"

I gave her a cheeky grin before responding. "That was more than enough of a gift for me, love."

She blushed furiously, and smacked my arm. "Oh hush, you. Just open your present."

Fred and I looked at each other and then tore into the paper. I pulled out a big, black afghan with "WWW" knit into it in a bright magenta. "Hermione, this is brilliant! Did you make this yourself?" I gushed, beaming at her.

She nodded. "Yup. This is why I've been spending so much time hiding up in my dormitory."

"It's fantastic, Mione, thank you," Fred said, leaning over to hug her. I realized I hadn't seen his yet, and looked over. It was the same as mine, but with opposite colours – magenta with black letters.

"I made them different because I figured you'd probably be tired of having everything matching," she said.

I turned to her and gave her a lingering kiss. "It's perfect, love. Thank you."

-oOo-

Later that night found me cuddled up with my girl on one of the squashy armchairs near the fire, snuggled under my new blanket. It was really warm, and amazingly soft. Hermione had one hand drawing shapes on my chest, and mine was tangled up in her hair, playing with it and lightly scratching her scalp.

Yawning, Hermione stretched her legs and placed a kiss on the underside of my jaw. "I'm pretty tired, George, I think I'm going to head up to bed. I hope you enjoyed your birthday."

I smiled warmly at her. "It couldn't have been better, love. Thank you so much, for both of my gifts. They were perfect."

She gave me a sultry grin and whispered, "there's plenty more where that first gift came from."

I could feel my pants get a little tighter. I ran my hands over her stomach – thankful for the blanket covering us – and then up her ribs, coming to linger on her chest. Giving her breasts a teasing little squeeze, I responded. "Minx. I look forward to it."

She reached up and cupped my face with both hands, and gave me a good minute-long snog. She pulled back slowly, and I leaned in to give her one last quick kiss. "G'night, babe, sleep well."

"Goodnight, George," she replied, climbing off my lap and heading up the stairs to her dorm.

Fred looked over, and then motioned up to the dorm with his eyes. I nodded and stood up, letting the blanket hang down in front of me, grateful it would cover up any visible indication of my 'problem.'

Once we were in the dorm, we climbed into Fred's bed, closed the curtains, and cast 'muffliato.'

"So..." Fred started, "spill."

I grinned at him. "So this morning, she woke me up by climbing into my bed and kissing me. Then, she said she wanted to wait a few minutes to give me my present, but would like to snog me senseless in the meantime. I know, right? So anyway, it gets better. After a few minutes of snogging, she flips us over and straddles my waist, sitting up. She told me 'happy birthday,' and then pulled her shirt off...and she wasn't wearing a bra! We had a really nice, long morning snog after that."

Fred grinned widely at me and clapped me on the shoulder. "Good for you, Georgie! Were they nice?"

"Fred!" I shouted, shoving him playfully. "I am NOT discussing my girlfriend's boobs with you."

He pouted before responding. "Spoilsport. I'd tell you if it was me and Angie!"

"Freddy, no offense, but I don't want to hear about Angelina's boobs."

"Whatever you say, George. But speaking of Angelina, I need to go say goodnight to her. Happy birthday, brother, I'll see you in the morning."

"Happy birthday, Fred. Goodnight."

* * *

><p>Posted: 9 October 2011<br>Word Count: 1,805


	25. Chapter 25

_For those who are curious, Fay Dunbar (mentioned in the last chapter, and this one) is a real character. Look her up on HP Wiki! Alexei is a product of my imagination, though._

_Thank you to **Emliy02** for catching my mistake! Hermione indeed *has* ridden a hippogriff, so I've fixed that in this chapter._

* * *

><p>"Hermione, what've you got in that jar there?"<p>

She paused mid-step, realizing she'd been caught trying to sneak the jar up to her dorm. "Ge-George! It's just a beetle. I wanted to study it," she replied, silently communicating with her eyes that I should come up to her dorm. I turned to Fred to tell him where I was going but before I could speak, he waved me off in the direction of the stairs without so much as a glance. I hopped up from my chair and made my way over to the girls' stairs, hitting the railing and then heading up to the 4th years' dorm.

Hermione was sitting on her bed with the jar in her lap, waiting for me. I climbed up beside her and closed the curtains as she cast a silencing charm. "So...you remember how I've been trying to figure out how Rita Skeeter's been finding out all that secret information?" I nodded, urging her to continue. "Well, I, um...I figured it out," she finished, hesitantly holding up the jar.

"Wait, Hermione; is...is that..._Rita Skeeter_ in there?" She nodded apprehensively, apparently anxious about how I would react. "Hermione, that's brilliant! She's an unregistered animagus, then? I'm so proud of you, I can't believe you'd use such...devious...tactics! What's the plan?"

She grinned widely at me. "Blackmail." I clutched my chest dramatically, pretending to be shocked. "I've decided to keep her in here for a few days, and threaten to expose her before I release her if she ever tries pulling anything like what she's done this year again."

I grinned widely at her. "That's my girl."

-oOo-

"Hermione!" I called, as I made my way over to the couch she was studying on. "Did Fred tell you about tonight yet?"

She looked up form her charms book. "No, should he have?"

"Yeah," I replied, "we're having a little party of sorts in our dorm, invitation only. It'll be us, Lee, Angie, Alicia, and maybe Katie. I might invite Krum, too."

"Sounds like fun, I'll be there! Can I bring my friend Fay? I think you guys will really like her."

I nodded. "Sure, no problem. Just don't go inviting a bunch of people, yeah? We'd like to keep this fairly small. Oh, and everyone needs to bring a few galleons to contribute for the Firewhiskey. Except you, of course. I've got you covered."

"Okay, I'll let her know. Thanks, George."

I smiled as I responded. "Right. See you tonight, Hermione!" I kissed her on the cheek before I ran off to cause some mischief with Lee.

-oOo-

Later that night found us clearing things off the floor in our dorm as people started to arrive. Angelina was the first one to join us, and she set herself to helping Fred clear away his stuff. Slowly, after her arrival, the rest of the people started to trickle in – Alicia, Hermione, Fay, Krum, and his brother Alexei. We all took a spot on the floor and a glass of Firewhiskey, and Fay and Alexei were introduced to everyone.

"Okay," Fred announced, once we'd settled in. "Now we were planning on starting with a game called Never Have I Ever. How does that sound?" After it sounded like everyone agreed, he continued. "Right. Rules are as follows: If you've done whatever's been announced, you take a sip of your drink. If you're the only one in that round, you have to do a shot instead, and tell the story. We'll go around the circle starting with...Alicia. Go!"

"Alright," Alicia started. "Never have I ever...shagged in a Hogwarts dorm." Angelina looked around and, seeing no one drinking, took a shot.

"ANGIE! WHO'D YOU SHAG?" Fred shouted.

"Calm down, Freddy. It was Oliver, last year. Never while I was with you. Way to start us off with drama, Leesh," she replied.

"Never haff I ever...believed in Divination," Viktor announced. Hermione giggled, seeing Fay, Alicia, and Alexei admitting to it.

"Good von, Viktor," Alexei said, picking up where his brother left off. "Never haff I ever...seen a unicorn."

"No one else?" Hermione asked, reaching for the shot glass. "Alright. I spent so much time with Hagrid last year that I happened to be there when he found one, and it let me approach and pet it."

"That's pretty neat, Hermione," I said. "Okay, my turn. Never have I ever...seen McGonagall in aerobics gear!"

"Ugggh," Lee and Fred groaned, "cheap shot!" Their over-dramatic misfortune made us all laugh.

"Never have I ever...left the British Isles," Hermione finished. It was a good one; George, Fred, Fay, Viktor, and Alexei all drank.

"Never have I ever...drank Firewhiskey before tonight," Fay stated. "No one else? Oh well."

"Alright, alright," Lee started. "Never have I ever jumped off a building."

Fay seemed to be the only one drinking, so she explained. "A few of my friends and I took turns jumping off the Astronomy Tower last year – onto our brooms, don't worry – to see who could have the coolest take-off."

Lee laughed and threw his arm around Fay's shoulder, causing her to blush. "I like this one, she's fun! Where'd you find her, Mione, and why have you been holding out on us?" The two girls laughed, and Fay explained that they had only really become friends this year.

A few hours – and several games and bottles of Firewhiskey – later, we were all starting to drift off towards bed. Everyone but Alicia stayed the night in our dorm – Lee and the Krum brothers summoned blankets and pillows (Lee having given his bed up to Fay, what a gentleman!), and Hermione and Angelina staying in Fred's and my bed. My girl and I climbed under the covers and put up a silencing spell as we closed the curtains. "I'm glad I brought Fay, it seems like she got along quite well with you guys!" Hermione said quietly.

"Yeah, she's a nice girl," I replied. "Plus, it seems like Lee's taken a bit of a liking to her already."

Hermione grinned. "So it seems. I'm interested to see how this plays out. But enough about them." She paused, and trailed her fingertips over my chest and abs. "You've got a willing witch in your bed with the curtains shut. What are you going to do about it?"

My jaw dropped and my eyes went wide, and then a crooked smile started to form. I grabbed her hips, pulling her to me, and brought my lips within a hair's breadth of hers before responding. "Whatever you'd like me to, my dear."

-oOo-

Today's the final task, and I'm currently sitting up in the stands with Hermione practically in my lap due to nerves, Fred by my side, and Mum, Bill, Ginny, Angie, Ron, Lee, and Fay surrounding us. Since Harry essentially has no family, Mum and Bill came up to Hogwarts to support him.

We've already seen Fleur and Viktor taken from the maze – while we were worried for Viktor, I noticed Bill eying Fleur with a rather soft expression – so now we're just waiting on Harry or Cedric to find the cup. All of a sudden, there was a flash of light as Harry and Cedric appeared outside the maze. The cup was a portkey?

Hermione started yelling for Harry, until she gasped and let out a blood-curdling scream. "He's dead! Cedric's dead!" She burst into tears, turned around, and threw her arms around my waist, burying her face in my chest. I looked at Fred, and he leaned forward to get a better look with Hermione's omnioculars. He slowly drew them away from his face as he turned to me, paler than I'd ever seen him. He didn't need to say anything, I understood.

Cedric Diggory was dead.

-oOo-

The next few days were a blur of emotions, tears, and packing. There was a memorial service for Cedric, which I held Ginny through the whole time. She's too young to experience something like this...it was extremely sad, and Dumbledore's words were pretty eye-opening.

The next day, we were seeing off Viktor and Alexei. It was sad to see them go, but we exchanged addresses with plans of owling back and forth, and possibly even visiting each other. As we were sending off the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons lot, I noticed Bill talking to Fleur, and handing her a slip of paper. Hmm...I'll have to ask him about that later.

And before I knew it, we were climbing aboard the Hogwarts Express for summer vacation. I got a compartment with Fred, Lee, and Hermione, and at one point, Fay stopped by. After she left, Lee admitted to us that they'd been talking, and were planning on owling back and forth this summer. Hermione got a huge grin on her face, and teased him about it. "Bet you're glad I invited her to that party, eh, Lee?" He just grinned bashfully and ruffled her hair.

And now we're at King's Cross, meeting our families. After saying goodbye to Lee, I headed over to the Grangers to greet them and kiss my girlfriend goodbye. We parted with the knowledge that we'd be together again in a few weeks, when she comes to join us at the Burrow for the rest of the summer. And thus ends the craziest, most eventful year of my life. It can only get easier from here, right?

If only I'd known then how wrong I'd be proven...

* * *

><p>Posted: 12 October 2011<br>Word Count: 1,627


	26. Chapter 26

__A word of caution for those readers that are younger than 18, or are more conservative - **this chapter is graphic**. Not sex, still, but more graphic than the last time. If you don't want to read the graphic part, skip the section between the stars. I have it clearly labeled so you won't miss it.__

* * *

><p>"Ready, Fred?"<p>

"Ready, George."

We strode into the phone booth, and dialed '62442.' The Welcome Witch greeted us, and after stating our business at the Ministry, we received our visitors' buttons. Fred laughed as he read his, and leaned over to read mine; it appears they've got the same clever title:

GEORGE WEASLEY

KNOWS HIS THREE D'S

We got into the lift and made our way up to level 6, to the Department of Magical Transportation. Walking into the Apparition Test Centre, we made our way to the desk and registered ourselves for testing. A few minutes later, there was a call for "Weasley, Fred." I clapped my brother on the shoulder and sent him off with a, "good luck, Freddo." He nodded at me, stood up, and walked into the office. No more than two minutes later, he strut out of the office, head held high, with a proud smile on his face.

"I did it, George!" He stopped walking, and then apparated next to me. I laughed, and gave him a big grin as I heard my name being called. "Go get 'em, Georgie," Fred said, as I walked into the office.

There was a desk, a filing cabinet, and a hoop on the floor. The test administrator, who had THE coolest moustache I'd ever seen, started to explain the process. "Hello, Mr. Weasley. Today is your first attempt at the Apparition test, correct?"

I nodded. "Yes sir."

"Alright. My name is Mr. Jorkins, and I'll be apparating with you today. First, I need you to recite the three d's."

"Destination, determination, and deliberation."

"Very good. Now can you please apparate into the center of that hoop over there?"

I looked over at the hoop, closed my eyes, and prepared myself for the sensation of being sucked through a tube. Then, I opened my eyes, and found myself dead-center in the hoop. Yes! I let out an internal cheer as I listened for the next instructions.

"Very good. Next, we'll be apparating separately into your father's office. You have been there before, correct?"

"Yes sir."

"Alright, whenever you're ready, go ahead. I'll be right behind you. Oh, and do try to avoid landing on the desk."

I nodded, shut my eyes, and went for it.

"George! Testing going well, then?" My dad asked, smiling.

"Going great!" I replied.

"Excellent! Come see me again when you're done, and bring Fred."

"Will do, dad."

"Okay, Mr. Weasley, now I'd like you to side-along apparate me back into my office," Mr. Jorkins said, nodding politely at my dad. "Have a nice day, Arthur, thanks for letting us use your office."

The last thing I saw before wrapping my hand around the instructor's arm and apparating us was my dad smiling. I opened my eyes, and saw a desk. Yessss! I did it!

"Congratulations, Mr. Weasley, you've passed! I just need you to sign your name on this form here, and you're free to go."

I signed the paperwork, and put down the quill with a flourish. "Thank you very much, Mr. Jorkins. You have a great day!" And with a huge grin, I apparated back out into the waiting area, into the chair next to Fred. "I did it, Freddy!"

He smiled at me, and gave me a high-five. "Nice work, George. Mum's gonna flip; we're gonna drive her nutters!"

"That we are, brother, that we are. Now let's go visit dad – he asked us to stop by on our way out." We apparated up to the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Department, and were greeted by our dad with a smile and a hug.

"Congratulations, boys! You're just in time for my break. Can I take you both out to lunch?"

"Sure!" we replied together, and we all three made our way down to the atrium to leave.

-oOo-

We apparated back into Grimmauld Place (we'd moved there for the summer), aiming for the kitchen. "Hello, Mum," we said together.

She let out a shriek, dropping her spatula, and then turned around and shook her finger at us. "You two...so I'm assuming you both passed?" We nodded, and she rushed over to hug us. "Now, don't you two go apparating everywhere, you understand? Just because you can use magic outside of school doesn't mean you need to whip your wands out for every little thing!"

"Yes, mum," we chimed.

"I wouldn't mind if you whipped your wand out every once in awhile," a soft, sultry voice whispered in my ear.

"Hermione!" I shouted, jumping around and throwing my arms around her. "What was that about me whipping out my wand for you?" I whispered back.

She laughed and smacked my chest. "You _know_ I was kidding, George. Though someday, maybe..."

I grinned at her and hugged her tighter. "I'm so happy to see you, love. It's been terribly unexciting without you here these past few weeks."

"Oi!" Fred exclaimed. "What about me?"

"You know I love you, Freddy," I said, letting go of Hermione and throwing myself at him, placing a big, wet, sloppy kiss on his cheek.

-oOo-

The next few weeks were spent cleaning, cleaning, and cleaning some more. Mum was hell-bent on making Number 12 spic-and-span, and livable, so we were constantly scrubbing, polishing, dusting; you name it, we cleaned it. All this work also meant that I rarely got to spend time with my best mates, outside of meals. I only saw Fred because I shared a room with him, and I only saw Hermione on the occasional night that I apparated into her room, or side-alonged her into mine, and Ginny or Fred was gracious enough to give us some alone time. Tonight, being one of those nights, found us in my room, cuddled under a fort made of sheets and sticking charms. My wand was standing up on the edge of the bed, with the tip lit up, as Hermione and I flipped through a photo album of her childhood. She was so adorable, with her big, bushy pigtails and her too-large front teeth. "Have I mentioned how cute you were, love?"

"Were?" she asked, with a cheeky grin.

I chuckled. "Fishing for compliments, are we? Yes, were. There are much better words I could use for you now. How do 'beautiful,' 'hot,' and 'captivating' sound?" I replied, stroking her cheek with the backs of my fingers.

She blushed, and waved off the compliments. "George..."

"Stop it, Hermione. I'm not just being nice – I'm being honest. You're going to have to learn how to accept compliments, because I don't intend to stop giving them."

She leaned over, closing the photo album, and placed it on the floor next to the bed. Then she turned to me, and grabbed my face with both hands. "I love you, George Weasley," she stated, grinning, and kissed me.

My heart stopped. I knew, in that moment, that I felt the same way. I felt it spread through my entire body like a wildfire, and my chest felt as if it would burst from all the love contained within me.

She must have realized I wasn't responding, because she pulled back, and a look of hurt crossed her features as she started removing her hands from my face. I reacted quickly, grabbing the backs of her hands and bringing them back up to rest on my cheeks. "Hermione..." I started, then paused to gather my courage. "I love you, too."

She grinned wider than I'd ever seen, and swooped back in to kiss me again.

*****GRAPHIC SECTION STARTS HERE. SKIP TO STARS TO AVOID READING IT*****

The next thing I knew, we were both down to our skivvies, breathing hard, and she was laying down on my bed with me hovering over her. I reached down under her back to unclasp her bra, and helped her out of it.

"You're so gorgeous, love," I murmured, drinking in the sight of her. Positioning myself to lay between her legs, I lightly gripped her hips, then slowly ran my hands up over her stomach, sides, chest, and neck, and then back down again. As my hands returned to their place on her hips, she grabbed one of mine with her own, and breathed loudly through her nose as she guided it down to rest over her knickers, barely brushing her most sacred of places. My eyes widened at this and I gasped, looking bewilderingly into her eyes. "H-Hermione," I breathed. "Are you sure about this? We don't have to go this far yet, you know."

She shook her head, leading my hand lower to come to rest fully over her clothed core. "No, George, I want this. I love you, and I want to show it by trying something new tonight."

I leaned up to rest my forehead against hers, smiling apprehensively. "I love you, too," I whispered, and slowly rubbed my hand back and forth against her sex a few times. She gasped, then purred quietly as she leaned her head back further into the pillow. My fingers found her clit, and began rubbing it in circles through the thin cotton. She arched her back up into me as she lightly dug her nails into my back, and let out a soft moan.

I had an idea, and decided to make a quick decision – I was going to go for it, and make the next move. I slid my hands back up to her waist, earning me a whimper at the loss of contact. I hesitantly slid the tips of my fingers into the top of her knickers, and pulled them down a little bit. Looking up at her face, I saw her give a barely noticeable nod, and continued pushing them down until she was exposed and I could remove them.

Leaning back a bit to take in my girlfriend's naked form for the first time, I groaned. "Gods, Hermione," I spoke quietly, "I've never seen a sight more beautiful than you are right now. How did I get so lucky as to deserve this?"

She blushed and started to squirm under my intense stare, but I quickly put an end to that when I leaned down to capture her lips in a searing kiss. We snogged furiously for a few minutes, our hands trailing all over each others bodies, and then I started my journey down towards her uncharted territory. My fingers brushed through her curls first, then ghosted over her nub, and finally reached her moist folds. I ran one finger upwards between her lower lips, and felt her shudder. It was an empowering feeling, having this much of an effect on someone, and I relished the discovery of it.

I continued drawing my fingers back and forth over her slit and nub, earning me soft gasps and breathy moans. In a move that surprised both myself and Hermione, I paused mid-swipe and gently pushed one of my fingers into her wet heat. She let out a low, shuddering moan. "Mmmm," she breathed, "George..." She arched her back, causing my finger to slip further into her, and I let out a quiet groan at the amazing feeling of her tight, warm passage around my finger, feeling myself getting harder. I slowly slid my finger out, and then back in, earning me another soft moan. I repeated this movement at a moderate pace, and raised my other hand up her body to gently caress her breast at the same time. I slowly started increasing my speed as her moans got louder. I could feel her starting to tense up, so I reached my thumb up to her clit to rub it while my other finger continued its ministrations. Less than a minute later, her body shook with the force of her orgasm. "George!" she cried out, and then groaned. "Unhhhh..." I could feel her body undulating beneath me and continued to pump my finger in and out of her and rub her clit as she rode out her high, hoping to make it that much better.

*****END OF GRAPHIC SECTION*****

"George," she spoke, once she had finally come down from her high and her breathing had slowed down. "That was amazing, thank you. I owe you one."

I shook my head. "Any time, love, but you don't owe me anything. It pleases me to please you; that's all I need."

She smiled fondly at me. "Have I mentioned that I'm the luckiest girl in the world? Because I'm pretty sure I am. You're the greatest boyfriend I could have possibly ever asked for."

I grinned cheekily at her. "You may have mentioned it, but it's always nice to hear again."

We cuddled together for awhile, and ended up falling asleep until Fred came in and woke us up. Luckily, Hermione had thought to slip some clothes on before we got too comfortable, because I would have been angry that my brother would have seen too much of my girl's body otherwise. I apparated her back into her and Ginny's room, kissed her goodnight, and returned to my bed. I fell asleep thinking of Hermione, and had sweet dreams as a result. Life had never been better.

* * *

><p>Posted: 19 October 2011<br>Word Count: 2,263


	27. Chapter 27

__I'd like to dedicate this chapter to my cat, Midnight, who I lost one year ago last Tuesday. He was a faithful friend for a good nearly 15 years, and I miss him more than I ever imagined possible. Hope you're having fun torturing all the lizards up in heaven, buddy.__

___Caterwauling Chews are Wizards-Pupil's creation, but the rest that you don't recognize (Crawling Chocolate, Giggling Gumdrops, Pigtail Pops, Waltzing Wafers, and all the wafer varieties) are all my creations. As is Offish Alley.___

* * *

><p>I apparently spoke too soon – Harry's facing possible expulsion from Hogwarts after using a Patronus charm against some dementors in front of his muggle cousin, and has to go to trial in front of the Wizengamot for it. The whole house is up in arms about it. None of us think he did anything wrong, of course, but with the way Fudge has been treating him, we're all a bit worried.<p>

It was with an excited, relieved air that Harry returned to Number 12 with dad and announced that he was cleared of all charges. We all celebrated with a butterbeer, but what we didn't realize was that we should have waited to celebrate until later that night; a few hours later, the Hogwarts letters arrived.

"George! George!" Hermione yelled as she bolted into Fred's and my room. "I made prefect!"

I beamed at her before picking her up and spinning her around. Putting her down, I kissed her forehead. "Congratulations, love, that's brilliant! I have to go get something real quick, though, why don't you go tell Harry and Ron the good news?"

She beamed at me, kissed my cheek, and ran back out the door. Fred just chuckled at the exchange. "Whaddaya need to get, Georgie?"

I grinned sheepishly at him, and answered quickly right as I apparated out of the house and into Diagon Alley. "Flowers."

I reappeared in Diagon Alley right in front of Flourish and Blott's. I turned onto Knockturn Alley and made my way to an aptly-named, less-patronized side street called Offish Alley. I spotted the flower shop and made a beeline for it. As soon as I stepped inside, the shopkeeper took a calculating look at me and said, "Hmm. I think it'll be...roses, yes?"

I looked up at him, surprised, and nodded. "Yessir, pink ones, please. A dozen. How did you know?"

He chuckled and moved to put together my bouquet. "When you've been selling flowers for as long as I have, you learn to read people's expressions and body language. I find that I'm almost always right with my guessing nowadays."

"That's a handy talent to have, sir," I replied as he rang me up. I paid him and bowed my head towards him. "Thank you, sir. Have a great day!" I exited the shop and apparated back to my room.

"It's about time you got back! Mum's on her way up to Ron and Harry's room; let's go see her reaction to Hermione's badge!" Fred exclaimed.

I nodded, and we both apparated up to the boys' room with a loud 'crack' just as mum reached the doorway. I hid the flowers behind my back before anyone noticed them, and mum started going crazy. "Oh, Hermione! Congratulations, dear. What an honour, your parents will be so proud!"

Hermione smiled bashfully. "Thank you, Mrs. Weasley, but Ron's a prefect too, you know..."

"I don't believe it!" Mum screeched. "I don't believe it! Oh, Ron, how wonderful! A prefect! That's everyone in the family!"

I started at that declaration. "What are Fred and I, next-door neighbours?" I asked, waving my hands out in front of me.

Hermione looked up at me shyly. "George, what are those?" she asked, looking pointedly at the flowers in my hand.

Bugger. I forgot those were there...this was not how I was planning on giving them to her. Oh well... "Why, they're roses, of course! For my favourite prefect!"

"Oi!" Ron shouted indignantly.

"Oh George, thank you!" Hermione exclaimed, beaming. She threw her arms around my waist, hugging me, and then drew herself up to place a kiss on my lips. "That was so sweet."

"What can I say? I know how to treat a lady," I replied, with a smug grin on my face.

Hermione laughed. "Your humble nature is your best asset, George."

-oOo-

So we're back at Hogwarts for my final year, and I'm pretty sure everything's going to go to shit _real_ quickly. Our new DADA professor is this horrid, toad-faced woman that dresses head-to-toe in a lurid shade of pink, and the best part is that she works for the minister. Yup, that's right, the ministry is interfering at Hogwarts this year. The hag even had the audacity to interrupt Dumbledore's welcoming speech! I'm already sure Fred, Lee and I are going to give her hell.

Speaking of Lee, I just got back to the common room and spotted him sitting on the couch...cuddled up with Fay. "Oi, Jordan!" I called. "When'd this happen?"

Lee turned around and beamed at me as I made my way over. "This summer. We ended up spending a lot of time together after discovering how close our houses were; one thing let to another, and here we are!"

I smirked. "Yeah, I'm sure that's the only reason...congrats, mate! And Fay – you picked a good one, excellent choice."

"What's an excellent choice?" Hermione asked, coming over and wrapping her arms around my waist.

"Lee. It seems he and Fay are dating."

"'Lo, Hermione!" Lee said, just as Fay said hello as well.

"Oh, fantastic! I _told_ you he liked you, Fay!" she responded with a grin. Fay just blushed and smiled bashfully.

"Lee, you have to check out the stuff Fred and I created this summer! We made a few trick sweets, and wait 'til you see our Extendable Ears!" I exclaimed, clapping him on the shoulder.

"Brilliant, bring 'em over here, wouldja? I'm far too comfortable to move."

"Lazy sod," I replied, grinning. "Lemme just go get them from my trunk." I ran up the stairs to my dorm, grabbed one of each new thing and our invention book, and headed back down. I found Hermione reading in the chair beside Lee and Fay's couch; perfect. I sat down at her feet and pulled out the first new creation. "So this is Crawling Chocolate. I got the idea from when we had Luna walking on the ceiling on our birthday. Obviously, it lets you crawl on walls and the ceiling." Fred came and sat down by Lee's feet as I explained, and seamlessly picked up where I left off.

"Then, after making those, we decided to go with a few other sweets. These are Giggling Gumdrops, and these are Caterwauling Chews. I'm sure you can figure out what each one does."

"Then, we expanded our range of trick wands, and finally, we came up with our best idea yet." I handed him an ear as I continued explaining. "Extendable Ears. They help you eavesdrop in even the trickiest of situations."

Fred quickly covered Lee's hands and tried to shoo away Crookshanks. "Just keep them away from cats; they seem to like chewing on them."

Lee looked at the two of us, beaming. "These are absolutely brilliant, gents! I'm impressed!"

"As am I," Fay added. "I knew you guys were smart, and clever, but never realized you were _this_ talented!"

"Why thank you, miss Dunbar," we responded together.

Lee handed the new products back to Fred, and we all settled in quietly. I was working on updating our inventions book, and at some point, Hermione had started running her fingers through my hair with her free hand. Now this, _this_ is exactly how life is supposed to be. Working on my products, surrounded by my best mates, with my girlfriend playing with my hair. Absolutely perfect.

-oOo-

So I'm sitting in Defence Against the Dark Arts (which, by the way, is mandatory for everyone this year), and I found myself daydreaming about my first real date with Hermione. We don't learn or practice spells in DADA anymore, we just read and re-read from the _ministry-approved_ textbook to learn the theoretical knowledge of the spells. Anyway, in the midst of my daydream, I was struck with two _brilliant_ ideas – Fred and I should create our own line of magical fireworks! They could be shaped like anything we wanted – animals, flowers, faces, shapes, whatever we can think of. The second idea is some sort of daydream charm. We could make them last just long enough to get the user through a lesson...this is excellent. I can't wait to tell Fred about this! We need to get working on it ASAP.

...Maybe Hermione will even help with the daydream charm! I can only hope, right?

"Mr. Weasley! Why aren't you reading the chapter?" Umbridge's shout drew me out of my musings, and I came up with a clever excuse on the spot.

"I'm thinking about what I just read, professor, hoping to grasp it better before re-reading it."

She blanched. _Victory is mine!_ "Very well. Carry on, then."

Fred slipped his hand under the table and slapped my leg. He indicated to his hand with his eyes, so I put my own hand under the desk and gave him a high-five.

-oOo-

As we walked out of Defence, Fred turned to me with an excited look on his face. "George! I came up with two new ideas for products during class! We need to go to the lab after lunch to start working some of this out."

"Did you really? So did I! What'd you come up with?" I responded, excited.

"Well, first is Pigtail Pops – lollipops that change your hair into pigtails, in whatever colour matches the flavor of sucker. The other is a line of Waltzing Wafers – they give you the urge to dance. We can have Foxtrot Fudge, Jitterbug Jam, Ballroom Blueberry, Salsa Strawberry...the possibilities are endless!"

"Blimey, Fred, that's a lot of inventing for one class period! Good on you, brother. My ideas aren't as extensive just yet, but one can be. We need to create a Daydream Charm; it should be just long enough to get someone through a lesson. And the other is a line of fireworks – I was thinking about calling them Weasley's Wildfire Whizbangs. We could go all sorts of places with the fireworks – shapes, sizes, colours – they can be whatever we want!"

"Georgie, we are gonna bank on this. Great ideas, I love them. Let's make a list of this stuff in our development notebook during lunch, and then we'll get to the actual creating after we eat. I'm really excited to tell Lee, he's gonna be stoked!"

I grinned widely at my brother. "We're going to be ready to open the shop by the end of the year, no question. Diagon Alley, here we come!" I clapped Fred on the shoulder, and he jumped at me, giving me a huge hug. "Hah, calm down, Freddy, let's not make a scene, now."

He grinned sheepishly, and linked arms with me as we made our way into the Great Hall with mischievous grins on our faces.

We sat down by Hermione, Lee, and Fay, and my girl looked over at us warily. "What are you two up to, with grins like those on your faces?"

"Oh Hermione," I responded, "we just came up with SO many great ideas for products during Defence..." We proceeded to tell the three of them all about our new ideas, and they jumped in with suggestions when we got to the wafers.

"You could do Can-Can Cherry!" Lee exclaimed.

"Ballet Bubblegum," Fay added.

"Line Dance Lemon! Belly Dance Banana! Tango Tangerine! Charleston Chocolate!..." Hermione got louder with each idea she spouted off.

"Whoa, whoa, Hermione! Hermione! Shhh...breathe... Thank you all for the suggestions, I'll write 'em down right now. We have to see if we can even make the Waltzing Wafer first before we can expand to other flavours, but we'll keep those in mind," Fred said.

"You've gotta let me help with the fireworks, those'll be so much fun to make!" Lee declared.

"Of course, Lee. You _are_ planning on becoming a partner in the shop with us, right?" I asked.

He nodded, and we all three grinned. "Brilliant."

* * *

><p>Posted: 29 October 2011<br>Word Count: 2,045


	28. Chapter 28

__There's a nod to **Wizards-Pupil** in this chapter, see if you can find it!  
>Reference to one of my favorite musicals somewhere in the chapter, too. Ten points to the house of your choice if you know which show it is :)<br>If you haven't seen my latest one-shot **A Letter from Lee**, go check it out! It can be read as a side-story to this one. /end shameless plug.__

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><p>I was sitting in the common room, kicking back with a copy of "Pranks Quarterly," when Ron came down the stairs. "Oh, Fred, perfect. Can I ask you for some advice?"<p>

"I'm George, but no problem," I replied, putting down my magazine and dropping my feet off the table, moving into a sitting position. "What's up, Ronnie?"

"Sorry, George. Well, you see, there's this girl..." he started hesitantly.

"Ooh, who's the lucky bird, then?" Fred asked, dropping in over the back of the couch on my other side.

"Erm, L-Luna. Luna Lovegood," he replied.

"So what's the problem?" Fred questioned.

"Um, how do I get her to like me?" Ron asked sheepishly.

"Mate, I'm pretty sure she likes you already. Just ask her on a date to Hogsmeade," I offered.

"You think she likes me? Why? How?"

"I think she's liked you for a long time, Ron. At least since the Yule Ball, maybe before. I seem to remember her eying you across the Great Hall, trying to work up the courage to ask you to dance."

He smiled brightly at me. "Really? I'd better go ask her now, then, while I'm feeling confident about this!" He stood up and strode purposefully towards the portrait hole, mumbling to himself.

"Good luck, Ronniekins!" Fred and I called to him as he exited Gryffindor Tower.

"Where's he headed so intently?" Hermione asked, sitting down on the couch where Ron had just been and curling up into my side.

"Ickle Ronnie's going to ask Luna to Hogsmeade," Fred replied proudly.

"It's about bloody time!" Hermione exclaimed. "I was beginning to think it would _never _happen!"

I chuckled and wrapped an arm around her. "Glad to hear you have such faith in our little brother, love." She just grinned sheepishly and opened her book.

A few minutes later, she looked up from her book and put her hand on my arm to get my attention. "George, I've decided what I want for my birthday this year."

I laughed as I responded. "Oh you have, have you?"

"Yes. I'd like for you to sneak us out of the castle and apparate us to a destination of my choosing so I can take you on a date."

"You want to take _me_ on a date for _your_ birthday?" I asked incredulously. She nodded, and I just shook my head. I'll never understand birds.

-oOo-

"I'm not wearing underwear today, no I'm not wearing underwear today. Not that you probably care, hmm hm hm hm hm hm hmm..."

"Fred," I called, "what the bloody hell are you singing?"

He chuckled. "Some muggle song I heard while borrowing Hermione's Pod-Eye. It's about knickers!"

"Clearly," I retorted. "I really hope you're just singing that for fun, though, and not because you're actually going commando..."

"Hah, no worries, Georgie. I'm wearing pants today," he replied, pulling down his trousers to show me his Weird Sisters boxers.

I slapped my hand up to my forehead. "Sometimes, I wonder how we're related."

-oOo-

So it's September 19th and I'm in the middle of giving Hermione her requested birthday present - sneaking us out of the castle to Hogsmeade and apparating us to Muggle London. I gave her a real gift, of course (a nice pair of earrings Ginny helped me pick out), but this was what she had specifically asked for, so here we are.

We arrived at the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron and she steered us towards the street. We hailed a taxi (a muggle car used like the Knight Bus, only privately and without beds), which took us to an Underground station. We rode something called The Tube - which I really enjoyed - and she all-too-soon grabbed my hand and dragged me off the metro and out of the station we had arrived at. She wouldn't tell me where we were going, only that I would enjoy it.

Eventually, we came upon a place called Chutes and Platters. We walked inside, and it felt like I had made the greatest discovery of my life; there were games with flashing lights and loud noises everywhere! Hermione must have been able to sense my distraction, because she grabbed my hand and dragged me towards the restaurant portion. "We'll play the games after dinner, George." I pouted, but followed her to a table. It _is_ her birthday, after all.

-oOo-

After a delicious dinner (which I insisted on paying for, of course, despite Hermione's objections), we were finally headed towards the games.

I spotted one with large mallets, so I dragged Hermione over to it. She proceeded to explain that it was called 'Whack-a-Mole,' and the goal of the game was to literally whack as many of the - what'd she call them, aminatonic? - moles as possible. We each wielded a mallet, and the madness began. Hermione was giggling like crazy by the end, with the most beautiful smile lighting up her face. I would take her here everyday for the rest of our lives if it meant I could see that smile each time...

We played a whole bunch of other games after that - shooting basketballs, snipe hunting with electronic guns, some weird rolling game called 'Skee-Ball,' and my personal favourite, 'Dance Dance Revolution.' I will definitely have to introduce Fred to that one, he'd love it. Dancing like loons to loud, crazy music? It's perfect for us! And at the end of the night we collected all our tickets and took them to the prize counter, where I couldn't help but trade them for a stuffed cat for Hermione that reminded me strangely of Crookshanks in its facial expression.

All too soon, we were headed towards an alley so I could apparate us back to Hogsmeade. Before I twisted us into the air, though, I turned to Hermione and cupped her face, kissing her deeply. "Happy birthday, love. Hope it was everything you wanted."

"All that and more," she replied, beaming at me. "Thank you for a wonderful night, George." I just smiled and apparated us back to Hogsmeade, before leading her to the Shrieking Shack to get us back on Hogwarts grounds.

-oOo-

My girl is so brilliant. Because Toady McToadface (Umbridge) isn't letting us learn or use any magic in DADA, Hermione came up with the idea of having Harry teach us. We just had a meeting in the Hog's Head about it, actually. How wicked is that? A secret, illegal defence society. We don't yet know what Harry is going to be teaching us, exactly, but I can't help but think it's going to be brilliant regardless.

Afterward, I got to spend an hour or so at the Three Broomsticks indulging in more warm butterbeer with my three best mates. It was an excellent day in Hogsmeade, I'd say.

And now I'm laid out on my stomach on the floor of the common room, by the fire, working on our latest invention (Belting Biscuits - they make you sing everything you say!) with Fred and Lee while Hermione uses me as a backrest while she reads.

"Goblin Galleons," Fred stated, out of the blue.

"What?" Lee asked.

"Goblin Galleons! Remember when we turned Ron into a goblin by spiking the oatmeal? We could make chocolate galleons that turn you into a goblin for a designated length of time! It'd be wicked," he mused.

I grinned at him. "Nice one, brother. We'll have to start on that after we finish this one."

"Too bad they wouldn't work on Umbridge," Lee stated. "She already resembles one too closely..."

-oOo-

Dragging my feet, I followed Harry through the portrait hole and braced myself to face my friends and teammates. Spotting our captain, I shouted over to her. "Ange, you're gonna have to find new beaters and a new seeker. We've been given a lifetime ban; you have too, Fred. She's even confiscated our brooms."

"WHAT?" Fred, Angelina, and Hermione shouted.

"A lifetime ban? She can't do that! I didn't even do anything!" Fred yelled, his voice brimming with exasperation.

"She can and she did, mate," Harry replied. "There's not much we can do about it now."

"Two new beaters _and_ a new seeker? That's half the team! Tell me this is a joke, George, _please,_" Angelina moaned.

"I wish I could," I responded, going to sit beside Hermione on the couch. I dropped into the seat on her left and she grabbed my shoulders, pulling me down to rest my head in her lap. She leaned down and placed a kiss on my forehead.

"I'm so sorry, George," she whispered, as she began running her fingers through my hair. Just this simple act of comfort helped to calm me down and even out my demeanor so much, I don't know how I ever dealt with anything before I had her. I burrowed my face into her stomach, then swung my arm back and shifted her legs to let my elbow hang down between her knees, positioning my hand to rub along her lower leg.

"I'm going to sleep," Angelina started, "in hopes that when I wake up, I'll find that this was just a terrible dream."

"Angie," Fred called softly.

She looked at him with a sad expression as he stood up and approached her. Hugging her, he dropped a kiss on top of her head and whispered something in her ear.

"Thanks, Freddy. I'll get in my pyjamas and head up there in a few minutes."

She removed herself from his embrace and headed up the stairs to her dormitory. Sighing, Fred turned and looked at me with a frown on his face. "I'm going on up to bed, George."

"Alright, Fred. I'll be up in a little while, too. Goodnight." He slowly dragged himself up the stairs to the dormitory, disappearing out of sight.

* * *

><p><em>What'd you think of Chutes and Platters? I thought it was a pretty clever name :D<em>

Posted: 16 November 2011  
>Word Count: 1,697<p> 


	29. Chapter 29

_This is a short chapter, but I felt like it cut off at a good point. Hopefully, the next one will be longer.  
><em>_Speaking of the next chapter, I have a request. I'm running low on ideas as to what to write, and could use some suggestions of things you'd like to see. I think I know where I'm ultimately going with this fic, but it's the in-between parts that I'm lacking. So any suggestions would be welcomed! Thanks :)_

* * *

><p>I'm pretty sure things can't get any worse. I'm banned from quidditch, have no broom, am being forced to take DADA with a miserable teacher who won't stop giving me and Fred detentions in which she tortures us, and I haven't gotten to spend nearly enough time with my girlfriend lately because of studying for her OWLs. I dragged myself along the seventh floor towards the Room of Requirement, thinking that at least I have one bright spot in my day – the DA meeting I'm headed towards – when it happened. My day got worse.<p>

Because there, standing at the entrance to the room, was Hermione, kissing Zacharias Smith.

I pushed past them angrily, shoving Hermione's shoulder in the process. Walking into the room, I immediately located Fred. "We're partners today, Fred. Tell Angie to partner with Hermione."

Fred looked at me with concern etched across his features. "Georgie, what happened?"

"Zacharias Smith happened. Or, better yet, is happening right now with Hermione in the corridor."

Fred blanched. "WHAT?" He ran out into the hallway, leaving me standing in the room by myself, silently fuming. He ran back in less than a minute later, looking slightly frantic. "George. I think you missed part of the situation...I just found Hermione crying in the hallway. Maybe you should talk to her."

"Absolutely not. Of all the people I could have found her with, Smith by far takes the cake. The only worse choice would have been Malfoy. At least if it was someone better, I could concede that maybe they deserved her more than I did, but SMITH? He can have her now, for all I care."

"Georgie...you're overreacting-"

"No, Fred," I interrupted, "I don't think I am. I didn't think my day could get any worse, but this is the straw that broke the camel's back. Just tell Angelina that you're my partner today, I don't want to talk about this anymore."

Fred walked away to talk to his girlfriend, and I relocated myself to the furthest corner of the room from where I normally sit with Hermione, dropping onto a cushion on the floor. He came back to sit with me a few minutes later, but not before I spotted Hermione sitting across the room from me, her face red and eyes puffy, with a sad, desperate expression on her face. I kept the stony look on my face and turned away from her gaze.

The meeting dragged on for ages, when all I wanted to do was go to my room and crawl up in bed, maybe punch a few pillows. Hermione came over at one point and tried to talk to me, but I turned a cold shoulder. "Can't you see I'm trying to practice Reducto right now, Hermione? Leave me be." She looked at me with sad eyes and turned around and walked back over to Angelina, her shoulders slumped. Fred gave me a look that clearly said he was miffed at me, then sighed and turned back to our practicing.

-oOo-

"George, this has gone on long enough," Harry announced, barging into my dorm room and throwing aside my curtains. It had been two days since the DA meeting; two days since I'd spoken to Hermione. "You need to go talk to her. Hear her side of the story. Aren't you tired of this? Don't you think you misread the situation?"

"I don't think I did," I snapped back. "How can you misread seeing your girlfriend snogging another bloke?"

"Did you ever consider the idea that maybe he caught her off-guard, and you stormed off just as she was about to shove him away from her?"

I paused, and stared at him blankly. "Wh-what?"

"Yeah," he replied, "that's what she told me. And that's what I got out of Smith, too, after I threatened to hex him. I might just do that anyway, considering what he told me. But seriously, George, do you not trust her to do right by you?"

I couldn't help the frown that fell across my features. "Well this is awkward. Now I feel like a complete prat..."

"I hate to say it, mate, but that's exactly how you've been acting."

"Thank you, Harry," I said quietly, collecting myself. Standing up and righting my rumpled clothes, I started towards the door. "I think I'll go talk to her now."

"That's a good idea, George."

-oOo-

I walked down the stairs to the common room, intent on finding Hermione and apologizing to her, but I didn't need to look very far. I found her standing with her fists balled on her hips, feet slightly apart, and her face redder than I'd ever seen it. She was facing Fred, who was sitting next to a first year he seemed to have been testing one of our products on.

"You CAN'T test on first years! How many times do I have to say it to get it through your thick skull? And in how many different ways?" she shouted.

I strode over to stand by my brother as he shouted back, "And why not? Show me where in the rules it says we can't do that."

"It's not fair to them!" she threw back. "They're too young and innocent to realize what they're getting themselves into! I simply will not allow it."

Fred rose to face her, steam practically coming out of his ears. "You can't stop us. Besides, it's not like you'll report us anyway, you don't want to see us get tortured."

Hermione drew herself to her full height; her eyes were narrowed and her hair seemed to crackle with electricity. "No," she said, her voice quivering with anger, "but I will write to your mother."

"You wouldn't," I said, horrified, finally making my presence known in the argument and taking a step back from her.

"Oh, yes, I would," she said, grimly. "I can't stop you from eating the stupid things yourself, but you're not giving them to first years."

We both looked at her, thunderstruck. That threat was _way_ below the belt. I can't believe my own girlfriend is treating us like this! Granted, we're not exactly on speaking terms at the moment, but she's still my girlfriend regardless...so much for trying to talk things out with her, guess our reconciliation will have to wait for another day.

Fred stormed away from Hermione, heading up the stairs. I stooped down to quickly collect all our products he had strewn about, chanced one last look at Hermione, and followed my brother to our dorm.

* * *

><p>Posted: 30 November 2011<br>Word Count: 1,126


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